


Athena: The Beginning

by Thewallflowerwithasword



Series: The Athena Chronicles [1]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Hogwarts First Year, Originally Posted on FanFiction.Net, Other, just the start, too young for relationships
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-07
Updated: 2016-08-18
Packaged: 2018-08-07 07:24:10
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 17
Words: 79,045
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7705735
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Thewallflowerwithasword/pseuds/Thewallflowerwithasword
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Athena grew up on the fringes of the Magical World with a man she learned to hate. learning so much about the wizarding world she was too young for but never knowing her past. This all changes when she receives one letter in green ink with the name Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.<br/>...Come follow Athena in her journey through the world of magic, as she learns about her past, what makes true friendships and what makes family.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> so this was originally posted on ff.net but I like this site too. I don't own Harry potter, I think the wishing well I've been using for that one either isn't strong enough or is broken. This is Athena's first year at Hogwarts, so no relationship yet. Please read and review because how can I get better if you all don't tell me what you think? hmmm...yea, I'm writing at you, dear reader.

Chapter One: Diagon Alley: Part One 

Blake Fraser was a bastard of a man. He was cold, quiet, borderline cruel and very strict. This was not the kind of man who should have been raising a child and I hated him with a passion. It’s pathetic that by ten years old I knew what hatred really was or what spell could be used to eviscerate a grown man in less than seven seconds. I hated the days that I was forced to get up before the dawn and enter would could be the equivalent of the American Navy Seals training.  
I can’t say I hated my tutor, the poor wretch of a woman who’d been hired to school me while I was dragged around the world by Blake Fraser, dark wizard bounty hunter/treasure hunter/mythical creature expert/womanizing man-whore/asshole. Kaylee was a lovely woman, in fact, who tried to shield me as much as possible from Blake’s influences. She did this through schoolwork; saying I needed to learn my history and letters more than I needed to learn how to kill a lion cub to make me stronger (psst! That cub was diseased and dying anyways and it would have been a mercy kill but I was only seven…so, yea).  
Traveling is how I spent my young years, until I was eleven and Fraser went back to his native Scotland. Kaylee followed until she was dismissed one summer day when a tawny owl brought a letter with my name written on it and the name Hogwarts on the upper corner in green ink. Fraser smirked at my surprise when he flicked the envelope at me.  
It had the standard; Dear Miss Athena Cassiopeia Black…oh, so I guess Black was going to be my official surname. Honestly, I’ve been iffy on that one for years because Fraser always seems to be changing my damn name. It continued; you’ve been accepted in Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry…so that’s why Fraser brought us back to Scotland. His smirk grew wider when I glared at him.  
“Did ya really think you’re were going anywhere else, lass?” he taunted “to Ilvermorny? Hmm? Or perhaps that frilly French school or that one in Japan? Nah, you’ve a parental burden to bare here,” he paused to drink the mixture of fire whiskey and coffee he had in his cup “sins of the parents visited upon the child.”  
I had learned long ago not to rise to his taunts and instead asked “is Kaylee taking me to get the supplies listed?” I held up the sheet of parchment.  
Fraser snorted “no,” he said simple “she’s no longer with us, I’m afraid. Her services are no longer needed as you’ll be going to proper school,” he gave a cold grin “instead, you’ll be going with my Aunt Minerva.”  
I frowned at that. It seemed that I’d heard that name before in one of Fraser’s family lectures. Ah, yes…Minerva McGonagall, head of the McGonagall clan of which Fraser is kin too. Had two brothers, mother gave up magic to please her squib husband who became a priest of all things. Catholic, suffer not a witch to live…I wonder what those holidays were like when the kids came home from Hogwarts. Awkward…  
She’d once been a part of the British Magical Ministry’s Department of Magical Law Enforcement, quit that rather quickly. Then she was hired by Dumbledore as a teacher at Hogwarts and took over as Laird McGonagall when her brothers Malcom and Robert Jr. were killed during what is considered the ‘First Wizarding War’ (1970-1981 with the fall of Voldemort). Ridiculous to call it that when witches and wizards have been fighting and killing each other in wars for centuries, what made this one so special?  
Professor McGonagall has one living sibling, a sister, younger who married into the lesser Fraser clan; she’s the bitch who whelped a bastard. I purposely forgot her name, ranks up there with names for daemons and various devils. As far as I know the professor had four children, three sons and a daughter with a man named Urquart; two of those sons died with their uncle. Urquart was eccentric fellow who let his children carry his wife’s name and died in 1985 born because he was playing with a poisonous plant that fought back.  
“She’ll be arriving tomorrow,” Fraser cut through my mental ramblings “early, so you best be presentable. She’s not as nice as I am, lass, so ya best be on your best behavior.”  
I gritted my teeth and nodded “yes, sir, may I be excused from the table?”  
Fraser looked from me to my unfinished plate and scowled. For once he didn’t taunt me but just ordered me to finish my food instead. Thank the Greek divine for which I was named after. Though I am a fan of bacon and eggs, at the current moment they were bland and hard to swallow. When I was done, Fraser barked at me to wash my plate and his before crying that I needed to learn discipline and this would help me build character.  
He let me go to my little room after that as he continued to read his wizarding newspaper. It was strange to have a room, I must say, even if it wasn’t going to be mine for very long. Everything I owned was in a beaten up steamer trunk that Kaylee had been very adept at shrinking and re-growing during our travels. It had been enchanted to fit all my possessions, my clothes, trinkets from different countries and all my books. There was a small library in there.  
A small library in which I picked a book on obscure mythical creatures, crawled up into the seat in the widow and started to read. Books had always been and will always be my friends. Never stayed long enough anywhere to have friends and I spent more time with adults then kids my own age. So books became a refuge, like Kaylee had taught me.  
It hurt that she’d been sent away without being allowed to tell me goodbye but I couldn’t afford tears just yet. Not until I was sure that Fraser was sleeping, then and only then was it safe. Another lesson learned that tears are punished if seen or heard by Fraser, Kaylee taught me to cry when it was safe. So I would hold my tears until later, until it was safe to mourn the loss of the only mother figure I’d ever had. An hour later, Fraser dragged me outside to run laps around the cottage and begin the day’s hellish workout.  
  
The next morning I was up with the sun, showered and dressed, habit at this point honestly. Rikki, Fraser’s house elf (and Kaylee’s silent ally even though the little guy is sworn to Fraser) already had breakfast on the table and Fraser’s morning paper waiting. The house elf had made sure to give me fruits and by the sight of the mangos, this was either going to be a bad or a strange day. I loved mangos and Rikki only gave them as reward or apology.  
In any case, I had them gone before Fraser came down from his room on the cottage’s second floor so that he didn’t see them, again safer that way. As usual, Fraser gave a grunt as a morning greeting. At the same time he was demanding his morning coffee the fireplace in the living room roared to life with green flames; out of them came a very tall witch in what the normal world would consider antiquated robes and a very stereotypical (tall and pokey) witch’s hat.  
She looked like she was in her mid-forties with a couple wrinkles, very green eyes like mine and black hair. I watched as she magicked away the soot from the fire while Fraser just raised his newly arrived coffee cup in greeting. The witch noticed and scowled at the younger man before moving over to him and slapping him upside the head for the disrespect. She may not be so bad after all.  
“Is that any way to greet your Laird and your aunt?” she demanded with a soften Scottish lit, as if trying to kill her natural brogue.  
“It’s the ass-tits of morning,” he complained vulgarly “so, aye, tis!”  
She smacked him again and growled before look towards me with critical eyes. It was eerie to be surveyed so harshly with eyes so like my own. I say harshly because her scowl deepened as she took in my curly black hair, tanned features that still had some determined baby fat clinging to them, my gangly build and I’m certain she was screaming internally at my knee length, cloth shorts and muggle metal band tee-shirt (loved Pink Floyd).  
“This is not the proper dress for a young lady,” McGonagall smacked Fraser again “you could at least dress her in pants!”  
Fraser ducked out of the rebuff and growled “tis summer and the lass does a lot of running. That hippie you hired as her tutor said this was healthier for her than pants.”  
McGonagall just shook her head “this will not do for Diagon Alley,” she glared at me “go put some pants on as I’m sure you don’t own a dress.”  
“Nope,” Fraser said sound proud, that was the only thing we’ve ever agreed upon “lass doesn’t own a one. Nor will she wear a skirt for a school uniform,” he said pointedly looking up at his aunt “canna renege on that agreement, Aunt Minerva. I willna let my teaching go to waste. Can’t fight properly in a dress!”  
That earned another scowl from the Deputy Headmistress, she made me change clothes before she was ordering me to follow her. Pinch of Floo powder and I was being directed through to a pub called the Leaky Cauldron. Fire travel is not my most favored but I arrive safely and didn’t keep the witch waiting very long. I followed her through the dreary pub and waved at some man named Tom before following to a back room. All this made me wonder how in the divines muggle parents still let their children even enter this world after having to go through a pub to get to their shopping, a freaking creepy pub at that!  
Maybe they forgot about it after the tapping of the wall that broke apart to reveal the flashy magical street beyond. If I wasn’t a part of the magical world and seen magical shopping districts around the world, I’m sure I’d feel that sense of awe, shock and wonder. Guess I’m just harder to impress, which showed in my raised eyebrow when I looked up at the witch who was watching me intently for my reaction.  
She smirked smugly, much in the same way that Fraser when he was taunting me, then without a word the professor took off towards a tall and leaning build (seriously it looked like it was only standing because of magic) that had in big gold letters Gringotts on the front. By the door were guard goblins, it’s my theory they did something to piss off the head manager, Gringotts has branches all over the world.  
They eyed me and the professor as we passed but did not move to stop us. Apparently we didn’t look like thieves, always a good thing. Not that we’re actual thieves but still goblins are very touchy about the vaults they rule over. Fraser has been known to call them greedy little bastards from time to time, I would say he was in good company then but I’m not allowed to say that.  
“Hello, Bodred,” McGonagall said in a polite tone when we reached an available teller, she read his name the plaque “I’m accompanying Miss Black for her school things and I need to make a withdrawal from the school’s orphan fund.”  
The beady eyed goblin raised a dark eyebrow at the professor before looking to me, his eyes narrowed at my look of surprise. That cheap-ass Fraser wasn’t funding this? What the freaking hell? There were so many bad words going through my head that an eleven, near twelve, year old shouldn’t know.  
“From the orphan fund for Miss Black?” he frowned and the professor nodded “I’m afraid there’s been a mix up, Professor McGonagall. I received a different set of instructions involving young Miss Black. I’m afraid you’ll have to talk to Griphook about this.”  
McGonagall growled as the teller window clanked shut and Bodred came round to usher us towards a door along the far wall that read ‘Account Manager Griphook’ on a gold plate. Goblins really love their gold. Bodred knocked on the door and then announced us to the voice that’d called out on the other side.  
“Ah, Professor,” Griphook smiled, well as much as the dwarfed, shriveled creatures with very sharp teeth could “and this must be your charge for the day?” he sat back in his chair and bought his long fingers together in a steeple, he was enjoying this.  
McGonagall noticed this as well “with all due respect, Griphook, this is a mistake. Miss Black’s name was already down on the orphan fund.”  
“That changed,” the goblin almost purred “when it came to our attention that Miss Black here is the official heir to the house of Black. With filed papers, confirmed bloodlines and recognition just this morning by Wizengamot,” he shrugged, I was very confused by this and even more by the older witch’s angry flush “I’m afraid that putting Miss Black on the orphan fund list is a waste of those funds in more ways than one.”  
“Wait!” I cried, I don’t like being confused “what in the name of the divines does that mean?”  
Griphook motioned me towards a chair on the other side of his desk, flicking his wrist to pass me a manila envelope “this was left for you, Miss Black. To explain everything; please take a moment and look over it.”  
I caught it but didn’t open it, instead I glanced at the fuming professor wondering if it was safe for me to open it. Griphook noticed the look and sighed softly before he hopped down and made his way around the desk. In a strange gesture, the normally cranky creature put a comforting hand on my knee. He caught my eye before he spoke.  
“I will ask one of my curse-breakers to come in and sit with you,” he said softly “I believe I need to have a word with the professor, Hogwarts’s business so no worries.”  
“Thank you, Master Griphook,” I bowed my head to him the best I could, show them respect and they don’t treat you like human dirt “may you find fortune.”  
The goblin beamed with amusement, his black eyes shining “may you as well, my friend. Now,” he looked to a scowling McGonagall “shall we, professor?”  
The very upset looking woman allowed the goblin to lead her from the room and the second that door was shut I had the envelope open. I had never been told about my parents. Oh, don’t think I haven’t asked but Fraser strongly discouraged those questions and made sure I knew that he wasn’t my father. He also magically bound Kaylee from giving me answers in his stead. He made snide remarks about them using words like foolish, stupid, foul gits and on occasion evil. Like he’d done when I got my Hogwarts letter, he like to say I had a parental burden. Tough to know what that burden is when you’ve no clue who your parents are.  
First thing that came out was a sheet with a family tree and I wondered if this wasn’t just a prank. One side had the Black family and the other held…the McGonagall family. I swore under my breath as I followed down to where they meet. Cygnus the Third and Druella Black (nee Rosier) gave life to three daughters; Bellatrix, Andromeda and Narcissa. Andromeda had married a man named Edward (Ted) Tonks and Narcissa had married Lucius Malfoy but they didn’t matter.  
It was the eldest, Bellatrix who was connected by a little line to Robert Bruce McGonagall; there was also a line connecting her to a Lestrange fellow. The same Robert Bruce McGonagall who was the second son of Minerva McGonagall and that Urquart fella. The best part though, was the line that attached to their marriage line (the same line that made Black a McGonagall) that had my name at the bottom of it. In fancy script was Athena Cassiopeia Black.  
I jumped a little when there was a knock at the door before it opened. In came a shorter woman in a dragon leather jacket (blue coloring), she had short blonde hair and kind blue eyes. Behind her was a tall, gangly man with shocking red hair that bushed his shoulders. He had an ear pierced. We studied each other before the blonde cleared her throat.  
“Hullo, love,” she greeted kindly as she came to kneel beside my chair “I’m Vicky Clearfield and this is Bill Weasley, he’s here on loan from Cairo, Egypt and my partner today. It be alright if we sat with you?”  
“Umm…sure, but only if you tell me what this means,” I nodded slowly and held out the family tree “I mean, you guys are paid to keep secrets right?”  
“Yes, love,” Bill nodded and knelt beside his partner and at the same time Vicky did, he said “wow!”  
Vicky looked up at me and blinked “you’re the granddaughter of McG? Whoa!”  
“I’m more surprised that you’re the daughter of Bellatrix Lestrange,” Bill frowned deeply “how’d that happen?”  
I smirked “well, Bill, when a mommy and a daddy really love each other…”  
“Shush you,” Bill said playfully while Vicky laughed heartily “I know how it happened…hey, you’re too young to know that! I’ve a brother your age!”  
I raised an eyebrow questioningly “congratulations?” I offered  
“You’re cheeky, I like it,” Vicky was still chuckling “but seriously, though, you might not want people to know about Bellatrix being your mum. Serious persona non grata around here. She’s in ranks with You-Know-Who and got herself locked up in Azkaban for it.”  
Bill sat down in front of me, then, and took the envelope from me and started looking through it with Vicky. This was a lot of information to take in. FUCK! I swore mentally, this meant that I was related to Blake Fraser. It also meant that Minerva McGonagall was my grandmother. Why was this such a secret?  
“Wait, you’re the heir to the fallen house of Black?” Bill asked shocked looking up from the paperwork in his hands  
I shrugged “that’s what Master Griphook said. Sent Professor McGonagall through the roof though she didn’t say anything. How would I be their heir when my father was a McGonagall? How is it a ‘fallen’ house? Seriously, what does this mean?”  
Vicky snorted contemptuously “first off, looks like the great Professor McGonagall has disinherited you completely kid,” she held up a piece of official looking paper “went through the ministry and everything at your last birthday, harsh. Means you’re free to inherit from your mother’s side because you’ve no legal ties to your father’s, makes your name official a Black.”  
“But why?” I frowned “I haven’t done anything against them. Hell! I’m just a kid!”  
Bill sighed heavily “it’s unfair is what it is but you have to understand after the wizarding war, there was a lot of strife between families. I’d say your dad had a lot of trouble coming from his family when he married your mum,” he explained “Black are traditionally a dark family and sided with You-Know-Who from the start. Old Cygnus was the head of your family and believed so much in You-Know-Who teachings about blood purity that he threw his own daughter out when she married a muggle-born. Disinherited her like you have been.”  
I frowned at that “which daughter?”  
“Oh,” Vicky jumped in then “that’d be the second daughter, Andromeda. Billy and me went to school with her daughter, Nymphadora Tonks. She just graduated, a Hufflepuff. If you met her, don’t call her Nymphadora, makes her crazy and her hair changes colors…don’t ask.” Vicky held up her hands before I even had a chance to ask what she meant by changing colors.  
I was storing this information away, I was storing this all way as I looked back to Bill “so what do you mean that the house of Black is a ‘fallen’ house?”  
He grimaced a little “well, it means that there’s really no Black’s left. In fact,” he gulped a little and looked like he didn’t want to talk about it but pushed on anyways “only you and Sirius Black carry the name Black. He’s in Azkaban with Bellatrix and if you were at the age of majority then you’d become Lady Black, head of the house. Fact,” he mused “you’re probably the only reason he still holds the title as you were born before he was sent away. You were born in late 79’ and he was put away in November of 81’.”  
“Huh,” I blinked several times “I’m honestly not bothered by this,” that shocked the two curse-breakers “I was raised by Blake Fraser, I’ve actually heard more messed up things than this,” that shocked them more “I mean, this is closer to home but still.”  
Bill was the first to come out of the daze “I don’t think you’ve given yourself a chance to process this, love. I’m not a part of it and I find it highly disconcerting. Are you sure you’re just eleven?”  
I shrugged “that’s what they tell me.”  
Before either of them could reply to that there was a knock at the door. It was Griphook, who looked a bit harassed but more so pleased with himself. He was beckoning me, and by extension the curse-breakers, out of his office. There was someone I needed to meet, he said, a solicitor of all things. The goblin was practically giddy and that left a bad feeling in my stomach. Oh, the woes of growing up too quickly and being taught to notice these things.  
With the paperwork back in the envelope, the curse-breakers followed me and the goblin towards a nearby conference room. Vicky and Bill both had a comforting hand on either side of my shoulders. It was bad that I’d just met them and felt safer with them than I’d ever had at my so called home, excluding Kaylee of course.  
At the conference room, just as the door opened, I saw McGonagall arguing with a sandy haired man of medium height and a very muscular build. The guy had board shoulders and his robes clung to his biceps. I honestly took a look around the room for the solicitor because this guy was not the image that was brought to mind by the word.  
The hushed argument ended when Griphook cleared his throat loudly. McGonagall looked fit to strangle something small and fluffy while the solicitor seemed to quickly let go of his anger. His honey brown eyes were deep and held intelligence of staggering portion. He quickly straightened his robes, habit I presume, before coming around the table and held his hand out toward me.  
“Hello, Athena, I’m Edward Tonks, I’m your solicitor. When I heard you were here, I came right down. It is a pleasure to finally meet you.” I’m sure that last bit was a dig at McGonagall.  
I hesitantly shook his hand “you’d be my Uncle Ted?” I asked and he nodded “isn’t this a conflict of interest?”  
He laughed and shook his head “technically no and yes, because my wife, Andy, was disinherited and no longer has legal ties to the family but you are my niece. I wanted to come and talk to you today instead of one of my colleagues. If you want, I can hand your account over to one of my associates at my firm who is every bit as good as I am.”  
I nodded as I let his hand go, long handshakes make me uncomfortable “no sense in getting you in trouble,” I pointed out “now, why do I need a barrister? Why didn’t she tell me she’s my grandmother, why the hell am I related to Fraser and what does me being an heir mean?”  
McGonagall growled loudly, reminded me of a cat giving a warning “my son wasn’t in his right mind marrying that…”  
“Hey now!” Uncle Ted pointed a finger in warning, weird that I just accepted him as an uncle.  
“Fine,” the professor snapped “he shouldn’t have married Bellatrix. She tricked him into it! She just wanted him for his title!” liar, I thought, she was lying.  
“Right, because the smartest witch of her age, who could have gone onto play professional Quidditch with the Holyhead Harpies, been a potion mistress if given the chance and next in line for the title of Lady Black after Sirius as Regulus was already dead,” Uncle Ted argued “wanted a second son from a lesser noble house. The Blacks are Most and Noble, one of the Scared Twenty-Eight! All while the McGonagall Clan only rank as Lairds. Try again, Professor, and please don’t lie this time.”  
“I have my reasons why the lass wasn’t told!” McGonagall glared death at the unfazed barrister, man was braver than I and the two curse-breakers because we three flinched at that “she would have been told when she was old enough!”  
“When she came of majority and realized that she’d been disinherited?” Ted snapped right back, calmly “that the people raising her had lied her whole life? Has lied, I should say. You don’t even have custody of her anymore!” he cried “you literally gave up that right by magical law when you filed for disownment! She should have already been in the UK for a year! I figured you, Professor, of all people would have realized that. Why’d you hide her for a full year?”  
Oh, that was news to me and to be honest, the heated argument between the two was starting to scare me because who’d want to argue over me? Plus they were pretty mad, who knew when the spells were gonna start flying. Self-preservation skilled kicked in and I took a couple small steps and hid behind Bill while reaching up to hold Vicky’s hand.  
“HEY!” Bill screamed cutting to pair off “she’s also just a child and you’re scaring her!” he snapped disgustedly as I hid my face in his back “she’s eleven years old, going for her first year at Hogwarts for Merlin’s Sake! What in the name of Merlin is wrong with the pair of you!?”  
That seemed to snap Uncle Ted’s argument and he honestly looked ashamed of himself “thank you, Mr. Weasley and I do believe my niece is correct, this account will handed off in-house but as of right now, I am enacting Wizengamot’s order that custody of Athena Black be handed over to myself and my wife. This was agreed on with the support of several houses, including Lady Bones, head of the DMLE, and Lady Longbottom of all people!” he glared challengingly at McGonagall  
“Wait,” I peeked out from behind Bill, under his arm “does this mean I don’t have to go back to Fraser?”  
Uncle Ted smirked “yes, it does.”  
“There’s nothing wrong with Blake!” the Professor snapped, I held my tongue, habit.  
Instead I said as politely as possible, Kaylee would be proud “that maybe, Professor, but you don’t have to live with him. I’ll take my chances with Uncle Ted, thank you, no offense.”  
“Fine,” Professor McGonagall threw up her hands “I’m done, do as you please! I’ll have her stuff sent to you.”  
“In one piece, please.” Uncle Ted asked politely  
With that she stormed out very graceful and cat like. I looked up at Bill and grinned in thanks for his support. He smiled back and draped his arm across my shoulders, brotherly like. Yep, he was one of my new favorite people. He, Uncle Ted and Vicky chuckled when I asked if I could keep Bill as a big brother. Apparently, Bill had plenty of practice as a big brother because he had six younger siblings…wow!  
The moment was ruined by Griphook, however, when the goblin clapped his hands in excitement and cheered slightly. He’d very much enjoyed the human drama, so much so that he waved the fees for my heir signet ring, my new key to the Black vault and to even get into the Black vault as it hadn’t in accessed in eleven years. I knew I should be greatly impressed by this because even the curse-breakers were astounded. I’ve said before, goblins love their gold.  
Bill and Vicky got the honor of accompanying Uncle Ted and me to the Tonks’ vault, I would have gotten coin from the Black vaults but Uncle Ted just said no, they owed me for back-birthday presents anyways. I was slightly disappointed by this because I really wanted to explore the Black vaults. I’ve always wanted a sword to be honest, hoped there’d be one I could claim as mine…oh, well some other time.


	2. Diagon Alley Pt. 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> see chapter one for disclaimer

Chapter Two: Diagon Alley: part two

By all rights the Tonks’ were well off, I mean that’s if I understand the height of coin piles correctly. Uncle Ted filled three bags, he winked at me and mentioned something about Nymphadora and a house warming gift…quite possibly several months’ rent by the looks of the bags, which ever was hers…that was before he mentioned something about lunch in Digaon Alley. I guess it was nearing that time.   
Lunch was held at a little sandwich shop down a little off shoot of Digaon Alley, next to a jewelry store and a second hand clothes shop. The jewelry place reminded me of the ring that was on my middle finger of my right hand. Griphook had proudly presented it to me when we came out of the caves.   
It was a simple thing, enchanted to fit my finger and stay that way as I grew older. The thing was silver with an engraved raven resting on a closed armored fist with the name Black on a small scroll underneath. Officially, this was my personal signet that my mother had set out for me when she found out she was pregnant with me. It was the Black name at the bottom that made it an heir ring. Honestly, that made me feel warm and fuzzy…no kidding involved.   
Anyways….right, lunch. I guess I should have expected what happened when Uncle Ted and I arrived at the sandwich shop. It was too specific and quickly chosen to be random but I was too distracted by shiny silver ring to pay attention. Then I was being introduced to the two women who were waiting outside the shop at one the shaded tables.   
The older woman, Aunt Andy as she was introduced, was about the same height as her husband. Around the 5’5’’ range. She had very curly dark brown hair, not black like mine but certainly as curly towards being unruly. Aunt Andy had beautiful but pale features and excited dark brown eyes. For some reason, as it was happening a lot today, I immediately felt comfortable in her presence.   
As it was, the other woman; a young woman no older than twenty I think, needed no introduction when her hair changed from a light blue color to a bright bubblegum pink “you must be…” I caught myself “right, they said you don’t like your name,” that made the young woman laugh “can I call you Nym?”  
“I prefer Tonks but for you, little cousin,” Nym smirked pulling me into a side hug “I’ll make an exception but only if you tell me who ‘they’ are?”  
“Bill Weasley and Vicky Clearfield,” Uncle Ted offered, his arm slung around his wife’s waist “they sat with her while Professor McGonagall and I sorted everything out and they went over the information packet that was put together for her,” which was now in Uncle Ted’s dragon leather briefcase “Athena wanted to adopt Bill as a brother once he stood up to McGonagall and myself, got us to stop arguing.”  
Nym just sniggered while Aunt Andy glared softly at her husband “those Weasleys are charming,” the hair color changer glanced down at me “they have six boys, ya know, if you want to go soft on one.”  
“Eww…” I scrunched up my nose “boys are gross, Nym,” that got a chuckle from the three Tonks “seriously, socks everywhere and they smell. Yuck. No thanks.”  
Nym gently poked at my side “you’ll change your mind when you get older.”  
“Doubt it,” I smirked “there are girls who like girls ya know, and boys who like boys, who says I strictly have to like boys? There’s a tribe of Amazons, real Amazons in Macedonia…modernized of course, but they have a no boys’ allowed rule and they do just fine,” I started to chuckle “one of them gave Fraser a wedgie, she became one of my heroes while we were there helping with the herd of Pegasus.”   
Aunt Andy started laughing out loud at the stunned look on Nym’s face when I said that. The older girl just blinked at me with her mouth slightly agape. It was then that my aunt pulled me from her daughter’s grasp and herded me towards the door of the sandwich shop. As far as I understood it from Kaylee’s explanation, homosexuality was not frowned upon by the magical community. That was more the Christian muggle discord that cropped up near the end of the Roman Empire. Thank you, Emperor Constantine, you asshole.   
I got asked a lot of questions over my roost beef sandwich…with lettuce, onions, extra Swiss chess, tomatoes, mayo and brown mustard. It was a little overwhelming to be honest. The three Tonks wanted to know all about me and I wasn’t sure what to say exactly, Fraser had always been quite secretive. What I’d said at the bank was enough for me to be punished with a lashing, which would then be healed by Kaylee but she wasn’t there anymore. Fraser called the lashings character building.   
Never before have I ever been so happy as to finally go shopping. Turns out that Nym had graduated at the end of the pervious term and had been expected into the Auror Corps. Simplest explanation of Aurors is that they are specially trained to investigate crimes perpetrated by dark witches and wizards and to catch them; a specialized branch within the DMLE (Department of Magical Law Enforcement, frigging mouthful).   
I could see that, sort of. Nym had already demonstrated she could change her features at will, she called herself a metamorphmagus. A Black family trait that happens once in ten births or so, born with it can’t be taught. The only problem I seen with Nym’s future career was the fact that she was clumsy as hell. She’d tripped thrice between the apothecary shop and school trunk-writing supply store…a whole two shops apart.   
We split up after that, Nym went with Uncle Ted to get my text books and other mundane supplies while I went with Aunt Andy for my wand and school robes. Then we’d met back up at Flourish and Blotts (bookshop) before going to the pet store. That had Nym excited, she liked the animals and her little barn owl needed more treats.   
First stop for Aunt Andy and myself was Ollivander’s on the south side of Digaon Alley. She did this to stave off the argument about pants vs. skirts (an argument I intended to win). Wands have always fascinated me, right up there with swords. I’ve met several Wand-masters from all over the world thanks to Fraser bringing them raw materials from time to time; that whole mythical creature expert thingy he had going. I don’t think many witches or wizards stop to take the time to understand just how unique wands are.   
To take a piece of wood, with properties all its own, hollow it out and stick a core in that may or may not even work with the wood its being put in; conflicting properties can end in inverse cancellation. Then it’s brought back together as a whole using ancient magicks that only wand makers understand, there might even be a bit of blood magic but I’ve never been able to confirm that. This all in to hopes that once it’s all together the wand hasn’t reacted badly and blown up. All this and not to mention the wand choses it’s witch or wizard.   
To be fair, I was a little disappointed about going to Ollivander for my wand. The Ollivander family had made wands since the practice of making wands started, if you believe their claims. Granted, they’ve been making them for a very long time but the art of customization is no long practiced in the UK. Big booms, customers getting hurt, over powered wands…mostly it was the over powered wands and dark idiots. Plus side, not going through wand after wand till your chosen.   
Ollivander’s smelled musty and dusty. There were shelves and shelves of wands, in boxes that only a mad man could have kept track with. Which is what the Ollivander in charge of this shop looked like. There seriously was a mad glint in his eyes when he peeked round the edge of one the shelves when the bell above the door chimed, ushering us in.   
“Ah…the Black Heir, come to get her first wand,” he greeted with a heavy and gravelly voice. Dude freaked me out…how did he know who I was? “I remember every wand I’ve ever sold,” he said easily as if he’d repeated that line a thousand times over in preparation for a thousand times more “your mother was particularly hard to satisfy but she got her wand. 12 ¾ inches, walnut, dragon heart string, unyielding. Your father, however, was the opposite, first try. 10 ½ inches, hawthorn, unicorn hair. I wonder what you’ll be.”  
The old man was gazing at me as if I was suddenly on trial. Before I could speak, he snapped his fingers and took off down one of the aisles. He never gave me a chance to speak, but kept putting wands in my hand and telling me emphatically to ‘give it a wave’. Blew out a window, set part of the shop on fire, broke a vase across the room and caused Ollivander’s own tie to attack him…that wand was quickly taken away.   
With a huff and a heavy sigh, Ollivander asked us to hold on, he’d be right back before the old man disappeared behind a grey curtain. When he came back ten minutes later, a younger son (middle aged man) was already helping another first year student. The older Ollivander studied me once more before putting a silver felt box in front of me.   
He never took his eyes off me before he pulled the lid off and brought out a very beautiful wand. It was a light wood with a silver caped handle that was decorated with a carvings of a little knight on horseback and a dragon. Slowly he held it out to me, handle first and unlike the others he didn’t tell me the specifics.   
The moment it hit my hand, I felt it. A powerful rush of power that both grounded me and sent me soaring, I was engulfed in a bright white light. I could hear the songs of marching armies but I felt at peace. This was my wand, my heart declared and for a second I thought I heard the wand declare I was its witch for foul or fair. The white light was gone when I opened my eyes and saw Ollivander looking at me worriedly. Gently he took the wand back and set it in its box.   
“This wand was made by my grandfather, 11 inches, aspen wood with the feather of a Valkyrie freely given,” he said simply with a heavy sigh “made in an attempt to meld the old traditions with the new. That old tradition was in the style for the Knights of Camelot,” I heard Aunt Andy give a sharp intake but I just shook my head because I didn’t understand “the knights who served King Arthur and his round table. At the core were seven who showed magical abilities. Merlin himself crafted their wands and helped them train to be better knights for the kingdom. These were wands of true valiant warriors and peace bringers, those willing to die for a cause.”  
“No,” Aunt Andy snapped suddenly, causing even the people across the shop to jump at the sharpness of her tone “she’ll not be getting that wand, Ollivander. Try again!”  
He frowned “she has been claimed, Andromeda, there is nothing that you or I can do about it. As much as we wish otherwise. I had hoped you’d fail this test as well, Miss Black but as I passed its resting place, I knew I had to let you try,” the old wand-master looked me in the eyes “the last wand like this to make a match was Robin of Locksley, Robin Hood. You will do great things but it is up to you either they are fair or foul.”  
The last bit stuck with me, echoing the words of my experience with the wand and freaked me out even more. Solemnly, Aunt Andy paid the ten gallon price tag all the while glaring death at the old man. After the sale was made, Ollivander reached under his counter before he’d let us leave and brought forth a box. He explained that someone had come in beforehand and purchased wand accessories as a gift for me.   
It included a full wand maintenance kit, a wrist holster of fine dragon leather quality colored back with little gold embroidered dragons and a book about wand lore and care. A rather expensive gift that even came with a black bow. I wondered if there was a theme with the black. Just because it’s my name doesn’t make it my favorite color. Personally I like purple, royal purple from snails and had a people named after them.   
Aunt Andy added my wand, still in the box, to the gift box before it went into the charmed messenger bag she wore; my future school bag. The bag was the only thing that hadn’t been sent to the Tonks house somewhere in or around London. Ollivander was thanked once again, Aunt Andy’s lacked the oomph to be considered heartfelt, and we said goodbye for good this time.   
The older woman sighed with relief once we were on the other side of the door. I wanted to ask about the knights, to have an explanation about what the old coot had been talking about. Maybe he’d sniffed too much varnish in his lifetime but from Andy’s reaction, that didn’t seem to be the case. I knew we were going to the bookshop later, I could always look for a book on it. That’s what I’d do…right after I got the robe-maker-lady to give me pants instead of skirts.   
Another hour and a half later, a very exasperated Andy led a very happy me to Flourish and Blotts where Uncle Ted and Nym were waiting. Uncle Ted tried to ask how everything had gone but Aunt Andy just pushed me towards her daughter and told us to meet them at the pet shop in an hour, then she dragged her husband towards the Leaky Cauldron, dinner would be afterwards.   
Laughing, Uncle Ted tossed Nym one of the coin purses he’d gotten earlier and followed his wife. In hushed tones, I quickly gave Nym the outline of what’d happened. She was intrigued about the wand and jealous that I’d won the battle of the pants, a battle that she’d lost. All I had to do was tell the seamstress that I was very, very uncomfortable with skirts. Only skirt I’d wear would be spelled out as k-i-l-t. I didn’t see that happening any time soon.   
As text books were already gotten, this shopping trip was just for pleasure. Nym called me a nerd, playfully, when I grinned at this. I soon lost her, not by choice, I had just set off after asking the clerk at the counter about where I could find a book about the knights. I had found several and was looking over one when I accidently bumped into another customer. Both our books crashed to the ground.   
“I’m so sorry,” I squeaked quickly bending down help with the mess “I wasn’t paying attention, sorry.”  
“I wasn’t paying attention either,” a soft voice apologized, intelligent with properly pronounced words, my age “I saw all these books about magical history and…sorry.”  
I looked up to get a face full of fizzy brown hair. This made me lean back a bit but I smiled when the girl, I was right she was my age, looked up. I caught myself smiling at a brown eyed girl with sun kissed skin, nice summer tan, and beautiful brown eyes. There were flecks of gold and emerald in them. The girl smiling back broke the staring spell.   
“Please forgive my clumsiness,” I stuck out my hand “Athena Black, at your service.”  
The girl lit up “Hermione Granger,” she enthusiastically shook my hand “are you of the Most Ancient and Noble House of Black? I’ve read about your house in Hogwarts: A History. One of your ancestors was a Hogwarts headmaster.”  
Her enthusiasm made me giggle…chuckle (more grown up) “firstly, yes, I’m of that House of Black, long story actually, just found that out today. I haven’t had the privilege of reading that particular tome and I was unaware of that fun fact. Thank you, Hermione Granger,” I bowed my head to her, respectfully “I am horrible lacking in familial knowledge. Any little bit is more than I had before.”  
Hermione froze and asked skeptically as she narrowed her eyes at me “you’re not pranking me, are you?” she asked unsurely “I know the Black Family doesn’t like muggle-borns. It’s documented.”  
“Ah, I was afraid of that,” I frowned “of the disliking part, not the pranking part,” I sighed heavily and admitted “I was raised by a cousin who was not interested in family history. I can assure you that I hold no ill-will towards anyone, neither do my current guardians but those who practice the foul dark arts, please believe me.”  
Hermione must have found something genuine and truthful in my words because she smiled and handed me one of my books “okay then,” she said simply and then tilted her head at me “you don’t talk like normal children our age. Well, I presume you’re my age. You are a first year at Hogwarts, correct?”  
I stood with my books and held a hand out to Hermione “that is correct. I was taught not to speak like a child but I have my moments. I’m cursed with formal apologizes.”  
Hermione’s eyes went wide “are you really? Is there a counter-curse? Do your guardians know?”  
I chuckled “I was being dramatic and teasing,” I confessed and Hermione sagged with relief before she smacked my shoulder.  
“Not nice!” she was trying not to laugh “I’m new to the magical world! No teasing!”  
I was laughing now, thus Nym decided to show “what’s going on here?” she asked leaning against the shelf behind Hermione.  
Hermione squeaked before spinning around to face the new voice behind her, moving to hide behind my shoulder. Looking over I smiled reassuringly at the frizzy haired girl “Hermione, this is my cousin, Nymphadora but she hates that,” I added quickly “most people call her Tonks but she lets me call her Nym. Nym,” I looked to my cousin “this is Hermione Granger. She’s a first year like me, muggle-born. Do you know of any books that could help her ease into the magical world?”  
Nym chuckled as Hermione stuck her hand out “please to meet you, Hermione, why were you beating on my cousin? I bet she deserved it.”  
“HEY!” I cried softly in protest   
Hermione giggled behind her books before answering Nym’s question “she was teasing me that she’d been cursed with formal apologizes. So yes, she did deserve it.”  
Nym grinned wickedly and gave Hermione a high-five while I pouted. Then my git of a cousin turned out to be helpful. It was a good thing that the bags the bookshop uses are charmed to be lightweight no matter how full. We spent fifteen minutes there, the last few were getting checked out and meeting Hermione’s parents, Richard and Denise.   
Somehow Nym got the Grangers convinced to go to the ice cream shop just down the street, it was the lure of sugar-free sherbet. The Grangers were dentists and where ecstatic to learn that Nym and I knew what that job description was. They’d spent most of the day explaining it to witches and wizards who had no clue. It was their second day in the Alley, further exploration and secondary purchases, as it were.   
Hermione was very curious about why I knew practically nothing about my family, which led to me telling her about all the places I’d visited. Her parents like to travel and did as much as they could during the summer. When Nym told the Grangers we were headed for pet shop, they almost begged off.   
“I’m not sure I want a pet this year,” Hermione explained “new place, and it’s a castle. I’d be worried about the poor thing getting lost or…eaten by something.”  
Nym just chuckled “safest bet is always an owl. They mostly sleep in the aviary, they can hunt and protect themselves and they deliver the mail. Always a crapshoot with the school’s owls.”  
“You could just come and see what they got, Hermione” I offered “give you an idea of what you’d want in the future. Besides, it’s too soon to say goodbye to a new friend.” Okay, those last words surprised me as well.   
Hermione grinned excitedly like it was Christmas morning as she looked up at her parents pleadingly. Mr. Granger sighed happily and nodded, then somehow ended up with his daughter’s shopping bags. Just like Nym got mine as Hermione grabbed my hand and yanked me towards the Magical Menagerie.   
Aunt Andy looked very amused as Hermione pulled me passed her and Uncle Ted and into the shop; Nym and the Grangers not far behind us. Holy divines, there were animals of all kinds in here. Some were fluffy, some had scales and there were some that were both fluffy and scaly at the same time; ding-ding-ding…we have a winner for the highest points on the creep factor, goes to the rat faced squirrel with lizard legs. Had to be a failed experiment because there’s no way that exists in nature.   
The animal I was drawn to the most was a black cat with silver markings, the sign called it an Umbra Felis which meant Shadow Cat. It was still a kitten but nearly an adult, sitting calmly it cage watching me and Hermione move about the store. I waved Nym over from where she was looking at owl treats. All she asked was if that’s what I wanted and when I nodded, took a lot to let her know that I wanted the cat, she picked the cage up and headed for the register.   
It was easy to see that the cat looked pleased with itself as Nym and Hermione piled its supplies next to the cage. The list included a potty box, litter, collar, toys (lots of toys), and books about shadow cats, food and treats, food and water dishes and a kitty climbing tower. That’s where I put a stop to the chaos and their need to spoil my not-my-kitty-yet.   
Uncle Ted arrived then and looked over the pile before adding owl treats. It was getting late in the day and I was looking forward to the shopping being over. I think Uncle Ted was too because he went through the process of animal health care questions rather quickly. We both felt accomplished when this was over, thankfully, I never wanted to experience this again…it was expensive and the attention was beginning to make me feel very uncomfortable. Like how the clerk was giving the once over for the hundredth time since we entered the store.  
“Are you Athena Black, by chance?” the clerk finally asked apprehensively  
That weird feeling like the one about the gift box at Ollivander’s was happening again as I nodded slowly “yes, why?”  
The clerk looked relived “because you’ve a gift waiting for you. I can’t say who but they came in earlier and purchased this,” the clerk turned and pulled a caged owl down from the shelf with a grunt. I could see why, the bird was huge! Like seriously huge “this is an eagle owl,” the clerk explained, the owl had a shaggy appearance with a mixture of brown, black and yellow feathers and very blood red eyes with black pupils “everything required has been purchased and there’s a note.”  
With that the clerk pulled a box from under the counter and slid it towards me. He was right, there was everything in there that was needed; treats, food of a sorts, a perch, books about care and treatment and so on. The note just read: happy late and early birthday, Athena. I know this doesn’t make up for the ones I’ve missed but I wanted you to have your own owl, just like the goddess of wisdom had hers.   
That was it, no clues and no name and now way to get it without forcing it out of the clerk. Found that to be a rather frustrating discovery. My aunt and uncle were flabbergasted as the bird, just like the box at Ollivander’s, wasn’t exactly cheap with the accessories not included. I whispered to Hermione about what had happened earlier while my guardians were trying to get more info out of the clerk, who just wanted to start closing up shop.   
There was no information to be had, sadly, the clerk was very firm on that. The Grangers declined the offer of diner in the Alley siting that they still had a drive ahead of them. Mailing addresses were exchanged before they left, Hermione gave me a hug before they were finally going.   
Then, the guardian apperated out with the bird and cat apiece. Magical transport sucks, I didn’t like feeling like I am being squeezed through a very small and dark tube but Nym was very good at it. She didn’t any bit of us behind which was nice. I found myself so tired, though, that she had to carry me into the house and directly to the room that was now mine. Before sleep claimed me for the hour before dinner, Nym kissed my temple and whispered that she was very happy to finally have me home.


	3. First Time Travelers on the Hogwarts Express

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> disclaimer at chapter one

The morning after Diagon Alley found me up before the dawn, stupid habits. I’d slept through dinner last night which isn’t surprising and not a first. I could hear some shuffling from down stairs so I guess it was safe, also, my trunk had arrived. This meant actual pjs instead of someone transfiguring my clothes like they’d done the night before.   
Frist stop after dressing though was an urgent need for the bathroom. There was one just down the hall for which I was very thankful and relived. Downstairs I found an interesting sight because I didn’t know the Tonks had a house elf who was being helped by Rikki. Neither elf noticed me as I sat down at the kitchen table and waited as they argued back and forth about who was going to take care of whom.   
“Miss Athena!” a high pitched and squeaky voice cried in my ear causing me to practically jump through the roof, I’d laid my head down on the table after five minutes of listening to the bickering elves “food!”  
I blinked rapidly as I leaned back in my chair and let the elf-that-was-not-Rikki push a plate in front of me with bacon, eggs and fruit that was accompanied by a glass of orange juice. The elf stood by waiting eagerly for me to acknowledge the food I’d been presented but I was too busy studying the elf.   
Like all elves, this one was short, thin limbed with big hands and very floppy ears. This one, though, had tuffs of dark hair around the crown of its head and coming out its ear with big blue eyes. It was young because it wasn’t swamped with wrinkles like Rikki was and it wore an unmarked pillow case as a tunic.   
“Miss Athena!” the elf got impatient “yous must eat! Mes and the grumpy one worked together! We made yous this!”  
I blinked again as Nym came through the kitchen door still in her pjs, she stopped in her tracks still scratching at the back of her head “where’d the house elves come from?” she asked trying to fight a yawn.   
The elf started poking me gently in the side until I picked up a fork “I know Rikki, he belongs to Fraser but I don’t know about this one,” I told the older witch whilst still looking at elf still poking me “who are you?”  
“I’s be Jubilee,” the elf grinned proudly “and Misses Cissy told me I was to be yours elf, Miss Athena. She told Jubilee to take cares of you like a good elf should be doing. The Heir to the Most Noble and Ancient of Houses must be taken care of, she says, and Jubilee be the elf for the doing!”  
I blinked and looked to Nym questioningly but she was just blinking as well, trying to process what the elf had said. Jubilee just giggled a little elven giggle before going over to my cousin and pulling her to the table. Once the confused witch was seated, Jubilee scurried off back to Rikki for another plate of food and a glass of orange juice.   
It was quite nice and peaceful if one is not questioning the how’s or why’s, which was why I was happily munching on mangos and kiwis when Aunt Andy stormed into the kitchen followed by a slightly younger woman whose hair couldn’t decide if it was blonde or black; look like it had given up and decided to co-exist in peaceful harmony.   
“I don’t see what the harm is, Andy!” the younger woman snapped “so what if I gave her an elf! She’s the heir to our family and I’m pretty sure that bastard of a man wasn’t as devoted to taking care of her as that battleax claims!”  
Aunt Andy whipped around and glared death, coming almost nose to nose with the woman “I asked you not to do this, Narcissa!” Andy growled “she needs to learn respect for all things, creatures and muggle-borns included. The old ways are gone and are what caused our family to fall! Why do you think Bella and Sirius are where they are?”  
Narcissa smirked with her hands on her hips, a defiant stance “because they were stupid and got caught! We both know that Sirius was dumb enough to get mixed up with Potter and that group the marauders. If he’s dumb enough to murder someone in the street with witnesses then he deserves to be where he is and Bella…” her stance deflated a bit “that’s a whole other subject but I’m telling you Andy, giving the girl an elf isn’t going to lead her to torching the ministry, murdering mudbloods in droves or sacrificing babies to the dark ones.”  
“Goats are better,” I offered trying to keep a teasing tone out of my voice, but my words stopped both women “the lost Swahili tribe use goats instead of babies, the dark ones say the goats taste better.”  
Both witches just gaped at me, Aunt Andy actually sputtered before I started laughing. The looks on their faces were priceless. Wish I could have had a camera and captured that. My laughter brought the witches to their senses and they both descended upon me with gentle smacks and tickles. They brought me to the floor, sliding me out of my seat, before I called mercy and they let up. I had tears in my eyes.   
“I’m not sure if her having Bella’s sense of humor is comforting or not.” Narcissa muttered to her older sister as the two picked me up off the floor and sat me back down in my chair.  
Aunt Andy gently cuffed me upside the head before sitting down beside her amused daughter “certainly not, is the answer to that question,” she sighed heavily then and looked between Nym and myself before giving a gentle wave towards Narcissa “Nymphadora, Athena, this is my younger sister, Narcissa Malfoy nee Black. She is your aunt.”  
Narcissa just smiled pleasantly as she sat down that the table, not batting an eyelash as Jubilee brought her a cup of coffee “please call me Aunt Cissy and I must say that I most certainly never thought I’d be sitting here like this,” she toasted us with her cup “well meet though.”  
“I thought you two had spoken in well over twenty years,” poor Nym sounded as confused as I was “what happened?”  
Aunt Cissy smirked and nodded towards me “Bella’s little girl happened. I guess you can thank Fergus McGonagall, actually, as he’s the one who filed those disownment papers that were almost nine or so years out of date,” the witch hummed happily as she sipped her cup “thus giving our girl here the right to claim ladyship of the house of Black. Not like we’re going to turn that down, even if Andy disobeyed father and was punished for it.”  
“Father was a fool!” Aunt Andy snapped after thanking Jubilee for her plate of food and her cup of coffee “it’s not the purity of blood that’s important! That is a very antiquated belief that only fools and bigots hold on to. Magic is magic no matter lineage!”  
Aunt Cissy just sighed like this was an old argument between the two “I know this,” she shrugged “but I also know the world we live in, the world that Athena will have to navigate if we wish to bring the Blacks back from the brink of obscurity. Firstly is getting our seat at Wizengamot back and doing so with Sirius in Azkaban is going to be tricky.”  
“Doesn’t this conflict with your husband’s interests?” Nym asked uncertainly   
Aunt Cissy just smirked “little witch, one day you’ll understand that just because your married doesn’t mean you give up your house,” she winked at Nym “is Black blood that runs through our veins and I guess I can stand your mother’s company long enough to resurrect our house. Athena here could even re-inherit the lot of you.”  
“You’ve always been so kind,” Aunt Andy said snidely with a roll of her eyes “so polite whilst twisting the dagger.”  
Aunt Cissy just smiled “I have my talents, dear sister.”



There was a downside to Rikki speaking with Jubilee, considering Aunt Andy had lost that battle with Aunt Cissy. What is that downside? The fact that they were both getting me out side for my work outs before Rikki returned to Fraser. I do believe the older elf instructed the younger elf about what I was supposed to do so I didn’t turn ‘tubby and lazy’…Fraser’s words.   
Somehow Nym got dragged into the workouts stating that she was going into Auror training at the end of the summer and needed to get into shape. It was nice having a running buddy as we did laps around the back garden.  
And thus….this is how the rest of my summer preceded. I named my new pets, the cat became Tiberius the Roman Cat because he reminded of a roman statue when he just sat there and he liked to wonder about the house. The eagle owl became Gorgo, Queen of Sparta (no, seriously Gorgo was the wife of King Leonidas who fought and died at the Battle of Thermopylae).   
So my summer days were split between running with Nym with Jubilee as referee, reading my new text books, the books about the knights and writing back and forth with Hermione which Gorgo seemed to enjoy, she liked to fly. As it happened, Hermione got one of my books about the knights. We had our own theories about the Round Table and what Merlin had done to persevere their memories and power. We also talked about what we’d be learning that year.   
About a week before we were to head to King’s Cross Station, Aunt Andy got time off from St. Mungo’s where she was a fully credited healer, to have in her words ‘fun’. Which meant moving Nym into her new apartment closer to the ministry before spending time exploring London like tourists. This was good because she managed to snag Hermione for a few days; with Hermione playing tour guide because she was so smart and had seen it all before.   
Still…though…no sword. I tried when we passed one metalwork shop but Nym just grabbed a hold of the back of my jacket and pulled me along on the way to London Tower. There were pictures taken, more sweets than were safe to ingest (by Nym), many historical sites visited and trinkets galore.   
Before we parted to get ready to go to school, Hermione made me promise to meet her on the train…like I was just going to abandon her (I was smacked for that sarcastic sentiment by the way). It seemed that Hermione had a hard time making friends because she was just so much smarter than everyone else. She and I both had a hard time relating to kids our own age so we had that in common.   
Nym spent the night before the train ride helping her parents and Jubilee make sure I had everything before we stayed up late while Nym told me several secrets like where the kitchens were, how to get the elves to give me something other than gross pumpkin juice, watching out for fake steps on the stairs and not…repeat not allowing myself to be sorted into Slytherin. If I went there it would be likely that the rest of the school would crucify me considering who my mum was. I slept cuddled up with Nym that night, feeling protected and like she was my sister.   
The train station was chaos the next morning as we met the Grangers near the ticket counter as the adults had agreed. Finding Platform 9 ¾ was hard for first timers and especially for muggle-born witches and wizard who didn’t have family history to fall back on. That’s also where I spotted a worried and lost looking boy with messed up black hair and ill-fitting clothes pushing a trolley loaded up like mine and Hermione’s. He had an owl.   
Taking a chance and side stepping a large family with red hair, I went over to the boy “are you by chance going to Hogwarts?” I asked my eyes flicking from his to his snowy owl   
The boy looked slightly relived “yes, I am. Do you by chance know how to find the platform? I’ve asked about but the worker thought I was mad.”  
I chuckled and nodded whilst sticking out my hand “Athena Black at your service, and yes, I believe I know how to get there or at least, my aunt does. Would you like to join us?”  
“Please,” the boy nodded quickly and shook my hand “I’m Harry Potter by the way.”  
I raised an eyebrow, famous name for such a scraggly boy but I mentioned nothing of it “pleasure, Harry, this way.”  
“Did you find another stray?” Nym asked and then protested when Hermione poked her side “so violent for someone so young! Haven’t you heard respect for your elders?”  
Hermione snorted, she and Nym had become good friends during our tour of London “elders are also wise…so are you sure you’re my elder?”  
“So cheeky,” Mrs. Granger chuckled rubbing Hermione’s shoulder while her daughter and Nym stuck their tongues out at each other “and so immature, at least Hermione has an excuse my dear Nym.”  
“Are they always like this?” Harry asked in a whisper as Nym protested to the female dentist.   
I giggled and nodded “ever since Nym tossed Hermione in the Granger’s pool fully clothed for being too serious. Nymphadora Tonks is the older one, but just call her Nym or Tonks. The one she’s arguing with is my best friend Hermione Granger. Those behind Hermione are her parents and the other couple are my aunt and uncle, Andromeda and Ted Tonks.”  
“Right,” Harry nodded committing the names to memory before speaking up and ruining the Nym/Hermione banter “I hate to interrupt but shouldn’t we find the train? I don’t think we should miss it.”  
Uncle Ted made a surprised face as he glanced at his watch and nodded “right you are, my boy, we should be getting to it. Right this way!” he cried softly and took off the way the red headed family had head.   
“Hermione Granger,” Hermione held her hand out to Harry while pushing her trolley “nice to meet a fellow first year.”  
Harry shook her hand with some difficulty, his trolley was wobbly “Harry, Harry Potter, nice to meet you too,” this got the Tonks’ attention but they kept quiet.   
Hermione’s eyes lit up and she moved to say something about how famous Harry was but I nudged her and shook my head, to cover this up she asked “so are you excited about school? I know I was, shocked too.”  
“Shocked is an understatement,” Harry muttered before nodded “I didn’t even know this world existed until owls kept showing up at my aunt and uncle’s house. Hagrid is the one who took me shopping.”  
“I went with Professor McGonagall, she’s the one who came to my house,” Hermione happily informed him, I raised an eyebrow at this. I had never told Hermione about my connection to the professor just that she was the one to take me to meet the goblins “she made a teapot dance to prove she wasn’t barking mad.”  
That made me chuckle but I didn’t get to add anything to it before Nym was shoving me towards a column between platforms 9 and 10 and told me to run. I did as I was told, though I did flinch when I passed through the barrier because I was expecting to have a crash instead of going through the brick column. I stepped quickly aside as Hermione came through next, followed by her parents, followed by Harry then Nym and then the elder Tonks.   
If the muggle station was chaos then this was pure bedlam. Parents saying goodbye to their children, children trying to get on the train, pets screeching whilst older siblings were taking oaths to look out for younger siblings and cousins. Actually, the energy of the place wouldn’t have been out of place at a Turkish market. I liked it, felt familiar from when I traveled there. Though I did feel incredibly smaller compared to the kids who were older than me, for good reason. I didn’t feel small compared to adults while traveling but I felt small here.   
Uncle Ted and Nym helped us onto the train and to find a compartment. Harry stayed with us at this point, just wanting be around someone he knew; which both Hermione and I understood. He was fun and helpful and very grateful; he even came back out with us to say goodbye to the parents and guardians and to make proper introductions. Harry blushed when Nym, Aunt Andy and Mrs. Granger gave him a hug and wished him luck at school; that blush deepened when Uncle Ted and Mr. Granger shook his hand firmly and told him to look out for us girls.   
When we returned to our berth we found that another boy had join us. He was a pudgy sort of kid who looked very nervous and kept running a nervous hand through his blonde hair. In his lap was a giant toad, a toad that Tiberius was eyeing from where his cage was in the rack above. The boy jumped up when we entered and promptly asked if he could join us.   
“Of course,” I nodded as Harry and Hermione nodded “the more the merrier. Besides my cousin warned about the tactics of the older students. Best to stay together.”  
“Th-thanks,” he stuttered as he sat back down next to Harry “I’m Neville Longbottom.”   
I grinned as Hermione and Harry introduced themselves “I know that name,” I held my hand out for him to shake “I owe your grandmother a debt of gratitude for a vote she backed over the summer at Wizengamot. If there’s ever anything I can do for you Neville, let me know. I’m Athena Black by the way.”  
“Ba-ba-Black?” he flinched and pulled his hand out of mine and stood “may-maybe I should find someplace else.”  
“Wait!” I caught him just as the train was starting to take off, we stood there with my hands on his shoulders “was it my name?” I asked and he nodded, looking frightened “I’m not going hurt you Neville, I swear to you,” he relaxed but not much “did…did my parents do something to hurt your family?” again he nodded with watery eyes this time “my cousin did say that I had a parental burden but I never understood what that meant. I don’t know what my parents did to your family, Neville…but…but,” I remembered the books that Aunt Cissy had insisted I read over the summer “I swear to you, Neville that I will make up for it. If you were need a wand by your side, you will have mine. If you ever need help, you have but to ask and that includes schoolwork. I will be your friend, if you let me; let me prove on the debt that my house owes yours?”  
Neville took two big breaths before he nodded “okay,” he said simply “I agree.”  
“Thank you, Neville,” I gave him a hug which he returned.   
“What was that?” Hermione asked when I sat back down   
Neville answered “an ancient custom amongst wizards,” he explained much calmer now “a sort of alliance and the repayment of a debt. I didn’t think anyone our age would ever use it though.”  
“I’m not sure I am our age,” I sighed heavily “and it seemed like the right thing to do. I have no idea what the debt is and it’s between our houses,” I knew that Hermione was too curious for her own good “but we will talk about it one day? Okay, Neville?”  
He just nodded as there came a knock on the berth’s door. It was a red headed boy with dirt on his nose and green eyes. He wore second and robes that were faded, he had his trunk with him and a rat in a cage. The boy shifted from foot to foot and looked nervously at us, emotion of the day right there.   
“Can I join you lot?” he asked “everywhere else is full.”  
Harry nodded “sure,” he even got up and helped the boy with his trunk.  
“I’m Ron Weasley,” the boy said as he sat down between Neville and Harry “and this is Scabbers. He was my brother Percy’s and my wand was my brother Charlie’s. Good to see you Neville.”  
“Hullo Ron, this is Trevor,” Neville held up his toad “and my wand was my dad’s.”  
“Your Gran didn’t get you a new one?” Ron asked curiously almost with a hint of jealously   
Neville shook his head “wanted to pass along something of my father’s, he was a great Auror you know.”  
“Tough luck,” Ron shook his head before he looked to the rest of us “right, so who are you?”  
“Hermione Granger,” Hermione nodded to him trying not to scowl “you’ve a bit of dirt on your nose, did you know?”  
“Whut?” Ron blushed about the color of his hair and rubbed furiously at his nose with the sleeve of his coat   
“I’m Harry Potter.” Harry was still chuckling at the boy’s antics   
Ron’s eyes went wide and he stopped his rubbing “blimey!” he cried “you’re Harry Potter! You’re famous, you are! You stopped You-Know-Who!”  
“What?” Harry looked confused   
I sighed heavily while Neville just shook his head “Harry, he’s referring to the fact that Lord Voldemort,” both Neville and Ron flinched and hissed at the name, learned habit that “fell the night your parents were killed thus ending what stupid people call the Frist Wizarding War. When you think Voldemort, think Hitler but with wands and no camps just death.”  
“Who?” Neville and Ron asked at the same time   
Harry ignored them and nodded “I know that but what’s that got to do with me.”  
“You’re the only person recorded to survive a killing curse,” Hermione explained “you’re in quite a few books, actually. I would have mentioned it earlier but Athena stopped, why?” she asked looking at me   
“Well, I didn’t figure Harry would want to be gawked at. I understand what it’s like to lose your parents in some fashion or another and being famous for it would freaking suck!” I explained “thought he’d want to be treated like a normal person.”  
“Thanks for that,” Harry half smiled at me “your right…hey!”  
About that time Ron and drawn his wand and pointed at me “you’re Athena Black! I read about you in the Daily Prophet!” he hissed as he stood “you’re the daughter of Bellatrix Lestrange the Death Eater. This is for my uncles!” he cried and started to brandish his wand before Neville tackled him.   
Fuck there was chaos then as the two boys rolled around on the floor, shouting obscenities and garbled words. The fight was only ended when two identical red headed boys came in and pulled the younger boys apart but not before there was two sharp snapping sounds. My groan mimicked the twin’s, apparently the three of us knew what snapping wands sounded like. Angrily that twins ripped the boys a part.  
“What’s going on here?” one of them demanded, the one holding Neville.   
The other said without missing a beat “what did you do, Ronikins?”  
Ron’s face was flushed and he was pointing at me, where Harry and I were standing having failed to pull the boys apart in time “that’s Athena Black!” he cried “she’s a Death Eater!”  
Neville pulled out of the one twin’s grasp and decked Ron across the chin, it wasn’t that impressive of a hit but it did draw blood “she’s my friend, you bleeding git!” he growled “and you broke my father’s wand!”  
The twins nodded in unison “we’d say you deserved that one, Ron,” they said together, the one getting Neville back under control, the other twin continued “mum’s not going to like this! Bill told you that she was not like her mum!”  
“What’s a Death Eater?” Harry asked   
“Not what I am, I can assure you,” I folded my arms across my chest, proud of Neville and livid at Ron “they’re followers of Voldemort. Oh, please, the dude’s dead and he was stupid get over it!” I snapped when the boys who understand the name flinched   
“Oh,” Harry nodded and shook his head “I don’t think she’s that, Ron. Athena’s been really nice, I met her family. Her aunt and uncle are really nice and so is her cousin.”  
Ron growled “so what? She’s still the daughter of a Death Eater.”  
“She’s already vowed to pay that debt,” Neville snarled, kid was fierce when protecting someone “a debt she owed to my family!”  
“See!” the twins declared as one, the one holding Ron continued “not your place to intervene and you don’t attack strangers. Not that you can now because you snapped Charlie’s wand!”   
“Mum is seriously not going to like this!” the other twin groaned “you’re going to get the first howler of the year because I’m going to write Mum about is if Percy doesn’t.”  
I sighed heavily “I’ll pay for both wands to be replace,” I announced causing everyone to look at me again, I held a hand up to help Hermione down off the bench where she stood to be out of the way of the fight “I’ll pay for the wands, it’s my fault they were fighting, well…at least in Neville’s case; Ron’s fault is his own but I’ll still pay for the wand.”  
“Why would you do that?” Ron snarled before getting slapped upside the head   
“Don’t look the gift unicorn in the mouth!” the twin that smacked him stated “be gracious and hope that the Lady Longbottom doesn’t demand that we pay for Neville’s wand, you tosser!”  
“I’m Athena Black, by the way,” I held a hand out for the twins “thanks for the help.”  
“Anytime,” the one holding Ron said shaking my hand “I’m George and that Fred.”  
“I thought I was George today,” Fred joked  
George shook his head “that’s tomorrow, brother.”   
“This is Hermione Granger and that’s Harry Potter,” I grinned at their joke, I liked these boys as the bowed to Hermione and shook Harry’s hand “would you kindly make mention to your mum that I am in your debt for stopping the fight, unwarranted as the fight was and that I’ll pay for the wands. We’ll have to talk to a professor about getting them to Digaon Alley to do that though.”  
The twins nodded as Fred said “we will, we’ll be headed for the prefect’s carriage next,” Ron groaned something about ‘not Percy!’   
“They’ll let the head boy and girl know and they’ll let McG know. She’ll get them sorted,” George finished “do you want us to take him with us?” he asked nodding towards Ron.  
“Ask Neville,” I shrugged “he’s the injured party in all this, I don’t mind as long as he apologizes and quits this Death Eater crap. I’m not one nor will I ever be one. Hermione is my best friend and she’s a muggle-born. I’ve just made friends with Harry and Neville and they’ve both been affected by those bastards,” I glared at Ron “I’ve never met my mum, she’s been in Azkaban almost my entire life. I didn’t know I was a Black until the middle of the summer, the same day I met Hermione. Don’t go accusing until you have proof.”  
“I agree with Athena,” Neville nodded from where Hermione was helping him wrap up the pieces of his father’s wand in a silky handkerchief “he apologizes he can stay. If that’s okay with Harry and Hermione.”  
Harry glared at the red headed boy “try that again and I’ll punch you, got it?” Ron nodded meekly   
Hermione just sighed “ignorance can be forgiven if the ignorant is willing to learn but ignorant violence needs more than an apology.”  
“Huh?” Ron frowned “what’d she say?”  
He was rewarded with another smack from his brothers “she said you can be forgiven about this if you keep your mouth shut and listen but you attack again and you’re out on your thumb!” George loosely translated   
“Basically.” Hermione shrugged   
Ron folded his arms across his chest “fine, I’m sorry about attacking you, Black and I’m sorry about Neville’s wand.”  
“Say that with any more insincerity and I might not think you mean it,” I smirked as I sat back down “but apology accepted, just because I can only imagine the hell you’re going to catch later.”  
“Do you have to use bad language?” Hermione demanded gently smacking me


	4. Sorting Which Witch Goes Where

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> see chapter one

Ron kept quiet for the rest of the trip, only talking when he was asked a direct question…well, this was after we got a visit from the head boy and girl, wands were show and Ron’s chin were starting to bruise. Then there was the visit from my cousin, I guess, Draco Malfoy. That went over like a sack of angry kittens.   
I’d have to write Aunt Cissy about her son and how to make new friends. Acting like a trumped up jerk-face and trying to steal someone’s candy from the Honeyduke’s cart isn’t the best method. I had thought that everything had settled down after that…until Neville realized that Trevor had vanished.   
There was a frantic search for him before we had to change into school robes. Neville wasn’t having a good day, I promised that if we couldn’t locate Trevor I’d get him another toad and stick it in terrarium. That seemed to perk the boy up but nothing did it better than when we were crossing the lake.   
Once off the train, Harry had dragged us over to where a very big man was calling for first years. The man was practically a giant but Harry eagerly introduced us to the mountain of a man as Rubeus Hagrid. If that wasn’t intimidating enough, the man had a big bushy beard and a very loud booming voice. All that scary was off put when the big man smiled when he seen Harry.  
“Hullo, there Harry!” he called   
Harry grinned up at the man “hello, Hagrid, I made friends.”  
Hagrid’s eyebrows got lost in his long wiry hair “really?” Harry nodded “good for you, Harry. We’ll chat about it later, but first…First Years! To the boats, only four to a boat please!”  
I did feel a bit bad for Ron when he got stuck in a different boat as Harry had pulled Hermione, Neville and myself towards a boat once Hagrid had announced. All the chatter died when the castle came into view, lit up in the moonlight. This definitely made the top ten list of the most magical things I’d ever seen…so far.   
Grinning, I felt Hermione’s hand slip into mine. I think she needed the touch to remain grounded and to remind herself that this was real, considering the big dopey grin she was sporting mixed with the look of pure awe. The effect was so great that no one said a word until we were on the other side of the lake, it was like we’d all agreed to stay silent and not break the mood.   
The mood was broken when something croaked from Hagrid’s boat and the big man asked “did anyone loose a toad?”  
“Trevor!” Neville squealed excitedly, practically shoving people aside to get there. That made me giggle, I was still getting him a terrarium though. Go magical, bigger on the inside.   
Trevor returned to our group like a conquering hero, receiving pats from Harry and myself. Hermione was too squeamish to greet the amphibian. I helped Neville tuck the toad away in his pocket before following after him and the other too. Ron stuck with the Irish boy he’d come the lake with.   
It was weird that I was actually happy to see Professor McGonagall. I smiled at her when she took over from Hagrid and began explaining the four houses and the rules. Also that fighting would not be tolerated, she was glaring at Ron when she said that. Then she told us to stay put so she could get ready for the ceremony.   
I tried to catch her before she left the room but she whispered that we’d talk later but she did pat me on the shoulder and gave a smile so I guess I was okay with waiting. With a heavy sigh I wondered back over to where everyone was debating about how sorting was going to be done. Ron was convinced there was troll wrestling involved. I’ve seen a troll, it was in a cage but still they are not small. They make Hagrid look tiny; so glad when Hermione dismissed that.   
“I told you, Potter,” Draco came over, shoving the Irish boy aside and glared at Ron “you don’t want to go making friends with the wrong sort.”  
Harry just grinned and shrugged “I think I’ve got it figured out, thanks anyways.”  
“Seriously, Draco, you’re trying too hard,” I shook my head at him and turned into time to catch Hermione when she jumped because a ghost had come through the wall right next to her “okay?” I asked as the room started to fill with ghosts being silly.   
“Yea,” Hermione nodded, getting her feet back under her “I wasn’t expecting that.”  
I chuckled as Neville whimpered out “I think that was the point.”  
An amused McGonagall returned in time to shoo the ghosts away. The corners of her mouth were turned up as she called us to enter the Great Hall. Whoa…Hermione had read a part of Hogwarts: A History to me once when she spent the night about the ceiling but nothing compared to seeing it in person.   
“…it’s enchanted!” I heard Hermione whispering to Harry and I could help but chuckle.   
It looked just like the night sky but candles floating about. I almost felt like I was back on the lake but this time we were cutting through a sea of black robes. It was only when Hermione elbowed me that I realized we were now standing before a talking hat that had just sang some song. Totally missed that, the ceiling was much more interesting; I saw a pair of tap shoes work with a pair of mime’s gloves and floating sunglasses to drive a car (no invisible person either)…talking hat was lame.   
“When I call your name, you’ll come up and put the hat on,” McGonagall announced before looking to the list in her hand, calling out clearly “Abbot, Hannah.”  
The girl in question nervously, still the emotion of the day, made her way up to the stool planted between the teachers’ table and the rest of the room. She sat down and looked questioningly up at McGonagall before the professor gently set the hat down. Hannah squeaked suddenly and flushed red in her cheeks. Her lips moved like she was talking to someone but the hat moved and a seam along the middle opened up and shouted “HUFFLEPUFF!”  
We all clapped as a relived but still mortified Hannah scurried off towards a table under a yellow banner that had a badger on it. Damn, the things I miss! I’d just now realized that there were banners over each of the four tables. Hermione elbowed me again to get my attention just at McGonagall called out “Black, Athena!” her voice was a bit shaky and she watched me intently as I causally walked up to the stool. She rolled her eyes at me when I gave her a small wave and nodded my head to her before I sat down.   
‘Interesting, very interesting!’ a voice muttered in my head ‘let me look through your head to see where you go.’  
“I think you’d have more fun at checkers,” I smirked back “nothing in this noggin but marbles and fishing lures.”  
The hat snort back laughter ‘you’ve your mother’s humor I see, that will do wonders for you, my dear. You’re ambitious like she was, just don’t know it yet. Maybe her house would work for you.’  
“Not frigging likely,” I growled at the hat “you put me in there and I’ll tear you to shreds and use you as bird cage lining.”  
The hat tisked disapprovingly at me, so did McGonagall ‘there’s no need for violence, Miss Black. How about something else yes? I see courage and compassion with lots of brains. Hallmarks your father exceled at, even with all the time he spent in the Headmaster’s office. Ravenclaw might be good…hmm?”  
I sighed “be nice if it was sometime time today, Chatty Kathy.”  
‘I see,’ the hat murmured ‘fine best be…’ the hat drew breath…weird, shouldn’t it not need to breathe…before shouting “Gryffindor!” for everyone to hear, I’d almost expected it to shout Hufflepuff. Too cheeky for Ravenclaw I’d think.   
I looked up at McGonagall as she took the hat off looking stunned that I’d been placed in her house and told her “huh…beats his first choice. Greens not my color.”  
Happily I winked to my friends still waiting and went to sit down by the beam and cheering Weasley twins. Both of whom ambushed me with a hug and made me sit across from them, they dashed across the table only to be scowled at by another, older red headed boy. We cheered when Susan Bones happily headed for Hufflepuff.   
One by one everyone headed off to their new houses. Frist Hermione, then Harry, then Neville and lastly Ron all came to join us under the red banner. The twins muttered that if their sister made Gryffindor they’d have a full house, all Weasleys sorted to the house of the lion. There three other girls and two more boys came to Gryffindor but at current moment I couldn’t remember their names. Could have cared less once Dumbledore stood up.   
The man looked like he’d seen a picture of Disney’s verison of a ‘wise’ old wizard/Merlin figure and copied it. Stars and moons were on blue robes, all that was missing was a humanized mouse dancing with broom…or was it a mop? Don’t remember but he finally spoke by shouting a WELCOME that echoed through the hall.  
“Welcome to a new year at Hogwarts,” he smiled out over the sea of students, it felt like his gaze had lingered over the Gryffindor table “now is not the time for words but for filling empty stomachs while we ponder these four words: Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment and Tweak!” then he clapped his hands together in a dramatic motion and the long wooden table creaked as food suddenly appeared.   
“What an odd, odd man.” I blinked at the now sitting headmaster who had his head close to McGonagall’s in conversation   
“He’s a genius!” the older red head sitting next to Harry offered, he was Percy Weasley, George whispered that he had a broomstick shoved up his back side and that’s why he was the No-fun-Weasley “he’s the greatest wizard of this age, brilliant man,” Percy shrugged then as if he’d thought about it “you’re probably right, Miss Black, he’s probably a little mad. What genius isn’t?”  
“Well, firstly, I said odd, but now we know how you really feel about him, Percy,” I grinned at the older boy while his younger brothers chuckled like mad hatters “got any more commentary on the other teachers…ow! Hermione! You’ve a sharp elbow! Leave my ribs alone!”  
“Then be nice,” Hermione shot back as I rubbed at my ribs and she was busy filling my plate with fruit pieces and crispy chicken legs, she’d already filled with mashed potatoes and a buttered dinner roll.   
“You do know I’m old enough to do this myself? Right?” I asked pointing towards my plate   
Hermione just shrugged as Harry and Neville sniggered, each on either side of the table “I know, but if I didn’t you’d chat the fest away,” she teased “oh, and it’s not pumpkin juice in your cup, its sweet tea.”  
“YES!” I hissed in victory with a fist pump “there is a pantheon of divine beings.”   
Hermione sniggered and whispered “that or Jubilee defied your aunt and came to Hogwarts anyways.”  
My eyes went wide as I gasped “bite your tongue, you cheeky child!” Hermione was out right laughing now “don’t laugh, that house elf is demented, I tell you, crazy!”  
“House elf?” Fred asked between bites  
Hermione had to explain because I had my mouth full “over the summer, Athena here was gifted a house elf from her aunt. Which is totally wrong, by the way, elves are sentient creatures who are basically slaves. The UK did away with slavery ages ago!” Hermione ranted and glared at me when I elbowed her for a change “anyways, the elf is very persistent in helping her ‘Miss Athena’, it was a little scary to be honest how she kept Athena to a strict schedule.”  
Before the twins could comment we heard Ron exclaim from just a bit further down the table “Oi! I know you!” he was grinning at a ghost in renaissance clothing. He had a frilly collar in spades and he was dressed like a noblemen “you’re Nearly Headless Nick!”  
The ghost frowned deeply at the young man “I prefer Sir Nicholas if you don’t mind, young man, or would you like me to call you Nearly Clean Weasley?”  
Okay, that was funny but it ended when Hermione squinted at the ghost trying to figure out why he was called that “nearly headless?” she asked “how are you called ‘nearly headless’?”  
The ghost just heaved a sigh and rolled his shoulders, popping his head off to the side where it hung to his severed neck by a thin piece of skin. Hermione gasped, Neville and Harry looked surprised but I cheered. That was so cool!  
“Do it again, Sir Nicholas! That was awesome!” I grinned stupidly at him whilst clapping like an idiot “is it bad if I have the sudden urge to poke you with a stick?” I asked   
Another heavy sigh and a shrug of his shoulders, Sir Nicholas’s head was back where it belonged “yes it is,” he raised an eyebrow at me “you’re either a Black or a McGonagall.”  
“Umm…both?” I offered uncertain if either was bad   
The knight gasped and muttered something about ‘Merlin save us all!’ before he floated away down the center of the table spooking the chattering students. Everyone in my general vicinity expect Hermione were gaping at me; she’s a smart cookie but she just doesn’t know the professor is my grandmother. Percy was the first to blink out of his daze and ask…  
“How are you both?”  
I grinned devilishly “well, Percy,” this was familiar “when a mommy and a daddy really love…ow! HERMIONE! Seriously! Imma go sit somewhere else. You and those ninja elbows…” I glared at her while the twins were beside themselves and Percy was turning red   
Hermione ignored me and looked to Percy “it’s complicated, leave it at that.”  
“Alright.” Percy expected it pretty easily but the twins were gazing at me intently   
They didn’t say anything about the topic as diner closed out as the desert appeared. I was very happy and very sleepy at this point; which was why I growled when Dumbledore stood again and began to talk. All seemed like standard stuff, the Forbidden Forest was named just (because it’s forbidden, what a shocker!), the caretaker of the school doesn’t like fun and had band certain items from the school (would have made more sense if that list would have been sent out with the Hogwarts letters, why ya telling us now?) and lastly the third floor corridor on the right hand was considered out of bounds….to anyone who didn’t want to die a grisly death (what the fuck?! Damn, I should have been paying attention, but why, oh, why would you tell kids that? That’s like telling someone not to push the big red button).  
I didn’t have time to lament my lack of attention to Dumbledore as Percy and the other perfects were ushering forth years and younger up to frog march us to our new dormitories. None of us noticing that Dumbledore and McGonagall were following us. We made it to the Gryffindor Tower easily enough, Harry and Hermione oohing and awing over the moving paintings who were showing off for the first years. Yea, suck in the beer gut now ya frigging monk, just wait till the end of the year when you’re letting it all out, I thought rolling my eyes.   
The Portrait of the Fat Lady was just wrong, why had nobody ever learned her name? It was so rude and beyond not nice that they were just referring to her as the ‘Fat Lady’. Even more annoying was her trying to show off her singing skills while ignoring Percy…wait, nope that was funny to see Percy getting irritated to where he had to shout the password at her. She then preceded to call him rude before swinging open.   
Percy took a deep breath to compose himself as the first years gathered in the common room before him. He turned around to speak but stopped when he saw the two teachers just coming through the porthole. McGonagall pointed to the youngest Weasley, Percy nodded and continued.  
“Girls dorms are that way to the right,” he pointed towards one stair case that led upwards “boys are that way to your left, there be a plaque by the door that says first years,” he pointed to the second staircase “everyone but those involved in the fight on the train, off you go.”  
Percy ushered the other first years away, who all gave us a backwards glance before disappearing at either staircase. The five of us left took seats at the Headmaster’s insistence, taking up the couch and the plush chair at the end of the couch. McGonagall took the other chair at the other end of the couch and left the chair by the fire for the Headmaster. We all shifted under the Headmaster’s gaze.  
“So,” he said softly “would someone like to tell me what happened?”   
Ron’s face turned red as he looked away from me. Neville spoke first before even Hermione got the chance “Ron tried to attack Athena with his wand, he was going to use magic on her just because she’s Bellatrix Lestrange’s daughter. I tackled him before he could, wouldn’t have had a chance to defend herself,” he stated bravely “she’d vowed to prove on the debt to my house to me for what happened to my parents, sir, promised to be my friend and to aid me if I ever needed it. I couldn’t let him hurt my friend! When Fred and George started to break up the fight, Ron put is knee on our wands and broke them…sir.” He added quickly   
Ron’s face was now the color of his hair. His temper got the better of him as he jumped out of the chair at the end of the couch and pointed at me “she’s the daughter of a Death Eater! And she’s the heir to a dark house!” he cried almost pleading with the headmaster never once seeing the danger for the head of his house “she should have been in Slytherin with the rest of the slimy snakes!”   
“That’ll be quite enough, Mr. Weasley!” McGonagall snapped and took breath to continue on but Dumbledore stopped her.   
“Did Miss Black threaten you in any way, Mr. Weasley?” the man wanted to know speaking softly, calmly.  
I sputtered at the question “pfft! No! Why would I?” I demanded   
“Miss Black,” Dumbledore motioned for me to be quiet “I just want to understand why he tried to attack you.”  
“Because he’s a scared little boy who doesn’t understand the whispering of adults!” I snapped “he’s heard my name in connection with my mum’s name, did the math, two and two made seven and off he went!” I glowered   
“I thought two and two make four…ow!” Harry whispered loudly and was promptly elbowed by Hermione, he winked at me when I looked at him and chuckled.   
The old man smiled at that “thank you, Harry but not right now, please.”  
“But her lot killed my uncles!” Ron cried “killed a lot of people! She should be punished for it!”  
“Mr. Weasley,” McGonagall’s voice was strained “we do not punish children for the sins of their fathers! I can personally tell you that Miss Black has not seen her mother since she was six months old! Athena is not responsible for the actions of her parents, sit back down!”  
“Huh…” I muttered with a raised an eyebrow as I sat back in the couch “I didn’t know that.”  
Ron looked back and forth between Dumbledore and McGonagall, looking pleadingly “but…but…she’s in the daughter of a Death Eater…”  
“Ron,” I sat forward with my elbows on my knees “do you know who my father was?” I asked ignoring McGonagall sharp breath “hmm?” he shook his head as he collapsed back into his chair “his name was Robert McGonagall, her second son,” I pointed to our head of our, ignoring my friend’s shock (new emotion of what was being a very long day?), “that makes her my grandmother, you git, which makes your whole commending me for your own prejudices pretty stupid. You know nothing about me or how I was raised. You simply heard a name and decided to try and be the big man on campus.”  
“Athena,” McGonagall waved me wearily off when tears started slipping down Ron’s cheeks “enough, I think he got the point,” she sighed and looked to my friends “it would appreciated if you kept that bit of knowledge to yourselves.” They just nodded silently.   
Dumbledore took control again, I wonder how he felt about arguing with children “there’s also the matter of Miss Black offering to pay for new wands for Mr. Longbottom and Mr. Weasley,” oh, slick, change the subject. He looked at me “does that offer still stand.”  
I drew a big breath and nodded “yes,” I said trying not to yawn “it does. I just don’t have the coin on me…”  
Dumbledore waved me off “I’ll just have you write a promissory note authorizing the transfer of funds. I’ll take the boys to Digaon Alley in the morning so none of my teachers miss their classes on the first day,” he looked to Hermione, Harry and myself “I would hope that such good friends and house mates would take good notes to be shared.”  
Everyone else was sent off to bed while Dumbledore had me write out the note with a sheet of parchment that McGonagall had produced. The older witch told me what to write: that I, Athena Black, authorized the payment for two wands from Ollivander’s Wands, one for Ronald Weasley and one for Neville Longbottom with coin the Black family vaults. Then I got to use my signet ring for the first time in a puddle of magic green wax and a Hogwarts ribbon that McGonagall had summoned from her office (she called a house elf to get it).


	5. Offical Hogwarts Students

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> see chapter numeral uno

Chapter Five: Official Hogwarts’s Students

First day of class I woke to the worst thing possible. Jubilee practically sitting on my chest whilst pokey my cheek. Her big blue eyes staring at me adorningly. There is no one alive who wouldn’t do what I did. Let out a scream that’d wake the dead and scramble out of bed. Which I fell out of ungracefully as the dorm room roused to wakefulness as my back hit Eloise’s night stand. I only know this because she introduced herself once Hermione and I had arrived to the room last night.   
“What happened?” the girl with colors for a name demanded as she stuck her head out from her bed   
“What’s going on?” the other girl asked, her family was from India (I think, the details of late night conversations are fuzzy at the moment)  
“Athena!” Hermione called and was kneeling beside me as Eloise stuck her head out of her curtains and looked down at us “what’s wrong!” my friend demanded   
“Big blue eyes…poking my cheek…” I managed with my heart still racing like mad, I swear I could hear the fast drum beat through my chest, I also managed to point at my bed.   
When Hermione flung the curtain back, Eloise had her wand at the ready that found Jubilee sitting on my bed looking as innocent as a new born kitten. Tiberius was with her, rubbing up against her and purring happily. He liked the strange little creature because she gave him treats.   
“JUBILEE!” Hermione shrieked just before McGonagall came through the door in a rush with one of the older girls close behind.   
“What’s going on?!” our head of house demanded  
Heart still pounding and I was now having trouble breathing “panic attack,” I said meekly.   
I don’t know how it happened but the older girl actually beat Hermione and McGonagall to me, kneeling before me intently. She had darker skin with long dark hair and dark eyes, her family most certainly hailed from around Africa at some point. Gently she took my hand and put it took her chest over her heart and copied her own movement with her hand over mine.   
“My name’s Angelina,” she smiled softly “and I need you to breathe with me, okay?” she took a deep slow breath when I nodded “in with me,” she said calmly, grinning when I followed her breathing “out with me,” she let the breath out slowly. Angelina did this until the panic attack was over and my breathing was normal. Then she took my face in her warm hands and wiped away my tears that the attack had produced “you’re going to be okay, love,” she promised “my mom gets this all the time, you just need to stop and breathe, okay?”  
“Okay, and thank you, Angelina,” I felt a little wobbly as she helped me up “waking up that way doesn’t agree with me.”  
She winked at me “I don’t think it does for anyone and you’re welcome, Athena.”  
McGonagall was still glaring at the elf sitting meekly on my bed as she ordered everyone to get dressed, breakfast was going to be starting soon. Then she awarded Angelina thirty points for quick thinking and helping out a younger student. Once the other girls were shooed out of the dorm, the professor sort of quick marched us to get dressed and smirked when she saw me wearing pants, she put a hand on my shoulder.   
“Are you alright, Athena?” she asked softly   
I shrugged “my chest hurts a little but that’ll pass, it always does. I do have weaknesses, ya know.”  
McGonagall sighed heavily and nodded as she removed her hand “I know, lass, but you’re better now so. What happened?”  
“I woke,” I turned and looked at the house elf still on my bed “to that one being right in my face, poking me!”  
“But Miss Athena needed to get up to do her morning routine,” Jubilee pouted “I is taking care of my charge, Jubilee a good elf, yes she is!”  
“Aunt Andy ordered to stay….” I started but the professor put her hand on my shoulder to stop me   
“Students are not allowed to have personal house elves come with them, Jubilee,” McGonagall explained “you could get Athena in trouble.”  
Jubilee’s eyes went wide “but who’s going to look after my human?” she demanded “who’s going to makes sure she gets sweat tea instead of pumpkin juice? Who’s going to make sure she eats her fruit and veggies? Who’s gonna make sure she goes to sleepy and get awake on time? Whose ta wash her clothes? That’s what Jubilee is for!” the little elf glared at McGonagall defiantly, standing up with her hands on her hips “I’s be seeing what Miss Kitty lets the other kiddies eat and it’s not healthy for my Miss Athena,” the elf snapped “she gots to bed late last night and did wake with the sun like normal!”  
McGonagall was a bit taken aback by the fierceness of the little creature. Let it be said that if I didn’t belong in this house, Jubilee certainly did. The professor growled softly and shook her head. Finally she just threw up her hands and deciding to take it up with Dumbledore when he returned from London. I guess she’d come here to the tower to get Neville and Ron up early to go with headmaster so they’d be Ollivander’s first customers, then heard my scream.   
The elf was ordered to stay out of sight and to work with the other elves until the issue was resolved or she’d be banished from the school grounds. Jubilee quickly agreed and then disappeared with a poof. Once we were alone, expect for Tiberius was who’d gone back to sleep on my pillow, McGonagall promised to actually sit down with me and talk this coming weekend.   
…..  
Breakfast was good, though Harry and Hermione demanded to know what had happened. Apparently my scream had woken the whole tower. Even the twins were asking me if I was alright. Reluctantly, I explained what had happened. About the elf and the very defiant stance she put on to confront McGonagall. The twins wanted to make Jubilee their mascot; the little elf must have heard them because suddenly their favorite jam that they’d been lamenting about not being on the table suddenly appeared.   
The twins were living it up when McGonagall came round to hand out time tables. Potions with Slytherins, Herbology with the Ravenclaws, flying lessons were a tossed salad of all houses, Charms with the Hufflepuffs, shite…we had mid-night astronomy…shite! Defense against the Dark Arts was back with the Ravenclaws and Transfiguration was with the Slytherins.   
With the twins’ help, Harry, Hermione and I found our way into the dungeons for our first lesson of the term and day (seriously, they should give a map with a red dot that moves-you are here)…potions with Professor Snape, the very same that Harry had been asking Percy about the night before. We had the class with the Slytherins, Draco rolled his eyes at me when I playfully threw a crumpled up ball of paper at him. He had glared until I grinned and waved before pointing to the paper. It was a simple note that just said: hello, cousin. Also, it had a smiley face. Hint: the eye rolling.   
Professor Snape certainly had a flare for the dramatic. The door bursting open to startle us first years, his cape billowing better than in fake vampire in a Hollywood movie, him being more committed to the color black than I was. His hair needed washed because it was a bit greasy and he did have a bit of a long nose but it was his attitude that stuck out the most.   
He was dreary and combative, also his default facial setting so far seemed to be set to sneer. His dark eyes took in every student before he spoke, using words to make potion making sound mystical and mysterious. Bah! It was a lot like cooking expect no food involved.   
Poor Harry had been taking the man’s words down, word for word, when the Professor turned his ire on Harry. From the way he goaded Harry with his questions, I wondered if it wasn’t personal for him. Then the man turned on Hermione and I was ready to chop him off at the knees and stick his head in a fire ant hill.   
He glared at me when he took points away from Hermione for knowing the answers, I knew them too but Hermione beat me to the hand raising, I had made a noise of protest, “do you want points taken away as well, Miss Black?”  
“Pfft!” I sighed deeply “might as well, you’re just upset because none of your house read ahead like Hermione and I did. Yes, I did ready the text book over the summer. Besides are we really going to cover alternative cures to poisons and how to properly brew Wolf’s Bane Potion this year?” I asked “I know several different alternative cures, best avoid the ones from South Africa because more lethal than the poisons themselves. Japan has been making good headway in research though, they’ve recently found a positive cure for the Death Beatle Draught.”  
Professor Snape looked taken aback for second like he hadn’t actually expected me to answer him, at all. He growled in annoyance and took fifteen points for cheek. I just shrugged and smiled at him. Between me and Hermione in other classes, we’d earn it back quickly. Though I just had to make sure not to let Angelina’s hard earned points this morning go to waste.   
I think we were all happy to finally leave the dungeons without the loss of more points. Then that happiness died a painful and mocked death the moment that Professor Binns opened his mouth for History of Magic. I’d been excited for this class, I like history. It was cool when the professor came in through the wall but then he started to speak in a monotonous, driveling voice that seemed to elongate words. Damn if he wasn’t better when a warm glass of milk or a hot room with classical music playing for wanting to sleep.   
Growling, I tuned the ghost out and wrote the letters I’d been saving for later that day. First one was to Aunt Cissy, her husband was on the school board. What was the point of coming to this school if we were going to learn a damn thing? History was vital, especially to us magical beings because it showed what not to do! Been there, done that…sort of thing and this bastard should have just passed onto to his afterlife. I did apologize for all the compiling about the ghost and the rest of the letter was spent filling her in on what’d happened so far.   
The dead bastard was still droning on when I finished the letter and looked up. Harry was drooling on his desk like so many other students. Only a few like Hermione were resisting the power of Binn’s voice and the lure of sleep. Hermione looked bright eyed in fact, it was scary. Shaking my head, I continued on to write letters to Aunt Andy, Uncle Ted and Nym. There was also time for quick notes to Bill and Vicky which I asked Nym to pass along if she would.   
That ended the class period, Hermione smacked Harry awake and dragged me along with her as she left the room “I’m so proud of you, Athena, you stayed awake and took notes.” She glared at Harry while praising me.  
“Ughhh…” I frowned and knew this was going to be painful “I was actually writing letters…ahh!”   
Harry laughed at the sight of Hermione chasing me down the hallway towards the Great Hall, trying to hit me with her History note book. I was still rubbing my abused shoulder when he finally arrived at his leisurely pace and joined us at the table. He started laughing again when I asked if he’d taken a detour on the way.   
“Who’s took what detour?” Neville asked seeming to suddenly appear as he sat down next to a laughing Harry  
“NEVILLE!” the three of us cheered, we tried to mob him but the only one close enough was Harry, who just patted him on the shoulder   
The blond boy just shook his head “so,” he said pulling several sandwiches on to his plate “what’d I miss?”  
“Nope,” I shook my head “I want to see this new wand.”  
With a playful sigh, Neville produced a dark red wand, long with a twisted handle that had a silvery finish “its 13 inches, cherry wood with a unicorn hair core and it feels like mine!” he grinned “now, what’d I miss?”  
“So bossy,” I smirked and was promptly smacked by Hermione, playfully “so violent, why am I friends with you people?”  
Harry answered with a laugh “because you like us,” he joked “and you’ve only known some of us for a day at that.”  
I made to respond but the Irish kid, Seamus, who’d been trying to turn his water to rum (nasty drink, kid most certainly had never had it) since Hermione and I had arrived decided then was a good time to interrupt by blowing up his goblet. Inconsiderate boy who most likely will become an alcoholic if this obsession with rum persists.   
Finally giving in, the three of us fill Neville in on what his missed. He was worried about the panic attack I had and concerned about Jubilee staying at Hogwarts; he was from an old family and knew about possessive elves. Neville whimpered at the description of the potions class and the master of the dungeons, the great bat himself. If the man would add some color to his wardrobe he wouldn’t be the great bat.   
Hermione hit me again for writing letters in class. She was so disappointed in me and a little hurt because she’d been so proud of me for taking the class seriously. That’s when I decided to cut out of lunch early, I’d had eaten by the way, so I could go deliver the letters. Gorgo was waiting in the aviary on a lower beam, she may have seen me coming. The Queen took the letters for Aunt Andy and her bunch and a school owl took the letter for Aunt Cissy.  
Made it to Charms class with minutes to spare and found Harry sitting with Ron. Hermione whispered after she’d yanked me into my seat that Ron had seemed so lonely that Harry wanted to cheer him up. Guess that was alright, I’m not going to say who can’t be friends with whom but woe be on Ron if he continues to be a jerk.   
Charms was fun, Flitwick was a hoot. He had a rocking mustache. Very well maintained like one of those small bonsai trees you find in Japan. Though he either had dwarfism (not the dwarves from Scandinavia) or was part goblin, I couldn’t tell. Either didn’t matter because he was fun, energetic and knew how to handle a class room of children who were taller than himself. So far, this was one of my favorite classes.   
Next class was Defense against the Dark Arts, or DADA as dubbed by the older students. This class was almost on the same level of sucky as History. The room was stuffy with incense (which was giving me a headache) and Quirrell had such a bad stutter that he should have taken up sign language out of frustration, I would have. I didn’t see myself liking this class at all, it was the teacher not the subject material.   
Once class was over, there was a three hour break before dinner. Hermione thought this was the perfect chance to get the day’s homework done, dragging me, Harry and Neville to the library. Oh, yes, even the fun loving Flitwick had seen fit to give us a two foot long essay. We all had to reference Hermione’s notes though for History class, after much groveling of course because of our bad note taking abilities.   
………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Over the next week I found that DADA sucked, potions was tolerable…mostly but only because I liked making potions. Transfiguration was challenging but fun and I was good at it; there was a small competition between Hermione, Draco and myself to see who could get the assigned spell done right first. Herbology was a kick in the pants, Professor Sprout had a wacky sense of humor that I fit with.  
Freaking hated Astronomy, why’d it have to be at midnight? Hmm? Night comes early to the Scottish Highlands and I’m not to the age yet where staying up that late seems fun. Jubilee was not happy about that. She’d been allowed to stay as long as she stayed with the elves and wasn’t seen by anyone, mainly because it would have taken effort on Dumbledore’s part to keep the elf away; reconfiguring the school’s wards to keep her out because elf magic is so much different than human magic.   
For Jubilee this was the greatest thing in the world because she sort of adopted the rest of the Gryffindor. Not as possessive of them as she was of me but she still brought them snacks when they were studying in the common room, made sure favorite foods were found on the dinner table and comforted the younger kids at night (which meant the whole house was under gag orders from the twins who didn’t want the treatment to end; somehow they even blackmailed Percy in to silence, I’m willing to learn the ways of the Weasley twins). Dang little elf managed to do this in under a week.   
The best thing (depending on who you were, sucked for me) was when the elf learned about the second week of term’s First Years’ flying lessons. Nym had tried to get Hermione at least somewhat comfortable around a broom as she’d let us fly around on her Cleansweep around the back garden that had powerful Notice-Me-Not charms placed on it. We learned very quickly that Hermione had a fear of heights, an extreme fear of heights. She did alright as long as her toes could still touch the ground and always looked away when I was zooming around the garden.   
This meant that Neville and Hermione were nervous wrecks when Madame Hooch came marching out to us and ordered to stand next to a broom. The school’s brooms were ancient, the tails were flared out with broken twigs and there were cracks in the handles. Some were even warped. These things were death traps and accidents waiting to happen.   
I grinned when Hooch told us to hold our hands out and order the broom ‘up’ into our hands. Closing my eyes, I didn’t…necessarily…say it…out loud. I sniggered happily when the broom snapped up to my hand; good and happy feeling until I opened my eyes and came face to face with Madam Hooch and her yellow hawk eyes. Tripping over my own feet I feel on my backside as I was trying to get away from her.   
“I didn’t hear you say ‘up’, Black,” she growled in the smooth but raspy voice that send a shiver of absolute dread and fear down my spine “are you going to give me trouble like your parents did?” my eyes went wide as I gulped and shook my head, that shiver was back when the Quidditch referee smiled devilishly “good,” she raspy then growled “now get up, try it again and I want to hear that voice of yours, Black!”  
I think I just lost ten years of my life to that woman, ten years…ten very precious years. Hooch snarled at me when she noticed I hadn’t moved, then I moved; rather quickly back to my feet and shouted ‘up’. It was nearly a scream and I winched when the wood slapped my hand, that hurt, that really, really hurt. Hooch gave me a near feral grin before she moved on, looking to my hand I winched again at the strip of red that was now across it.   
If the woman had the power to put the fear of Hooch in me then I could only watch as she sent poor Neville into a practical meltdown. Between his nerves and the unreliability of the ancient brooms, what happened was inevitable. Like the fall of Rome, Bonnie Prince Charlie failing the Scots in the 1745 uprising, the Boston Tea Party, the French Revolution and Subway being a bit hit in both magical and muggle worlds.   
Neville mounted the broom like we’d been ordered and that’s where shite went bad. The broom hit a glitch and took itself and Neville for a ride. Hooch had tried to get him back down before as the broom had rose up but it wasn’t following commands, she groaned something like ‘not again!’ as the broom took off.   
Not thinking about it, I shoot off after him. I couldn’t get to him before he bounced off the side of the school but I did get him before he was skewered by a lethal dragon shaped weather vane. I yanked him off the savage broom but overbalanced and came off the other side; not sure if it was luck that we crashed through the lone tree that was in the flying courtyard but we seemed to be greeted by ever branch on the way down.   
Neville cried out in pain when we hit the ground and I was sure I heard a familiar ‘snap’…bone this time not wand ‘snap’. I’d heard it myself when my ribs were giving high-fives, low fives and too-slow-Joe to the tall branches on the way down. Madam Hooch was there in an instant.   
“I thought you weren’t going to be trouble, Black!” she growled after she’d helped Neville up and had him holding his broken wrist, she was helping me up.  
I growled right back “get better brooms and we…” it hurt to breathe “wouldn’t have….a problem!”   
Hooch just snorted, put her arm around me and looked to gathering class “I’m taking these who daredevils to the infirmary. Means the rest of you are grounded until I get back,” her raspy voice was firm and stern “if any of you lot decided otherwise, you’ll be out of here before you can even think to say the word Quidditch!”  
Hermione gave me a worried look as we passed by and I noticed that Draco was picking something up off the ground. It was round and red, probably Neville’s rememberall that he’d gotten from his Gran this morning’s mail. I would…ah, fuck it, I’d worry about that later, too much pain throbbing in me to care.  
Thus my first meeting with one Madam Pompfrey, matron of pain and suffering…also the infirmary. Neville was taken care of right quick with a wave of a wand and a pain potion as his was a single, simple break; he was sent on his way. Mine, however, was more complicated…like my life. There were multiple fractures to multiple ribs, bruised lungs and several bruised bones like my shins and forearm.   
I was changed into a set of infirmary pjs, given a healing potion, a pain potion and a sleeping draught. My last conscious thought was that I was gonna go back to that tree and cut it down or just burn all the school brooms and force the issue of new ones! Setting fire to the brooms….sounded….better *zzzzz!*  
It was humming that woke me, soft humming coming from the end of my bed. The morning sun was coming up and I wasn’t in pain, first things I noticed. Second thing was that Jubilee was sitting on the end of my bed patching up my torn robes from the tree attack with needle and thread.   
“Yous best not be thinking of moving, Miss Athena,” Jubilee called softly not looking up from her work “ors I be putting a sticky thought on you and keeping yous in the bed. I go fetch the grumpy one.”   
“What?” I frowned as Jubilee finished what she was doing and hopped off the bed and headed toward what looked like Madam Pompfrey’s office.   
Well, at least there was a big picture window and I could see the matron sitting at a desk writing something down. I watch Pompfrey jump a little when Jubilee just suddenly seemed to appear next to her, the little elf pointed towards me and the woman’s gaze follow. She said a word of thanks and bowed her head, I saw her lips move, before the healer put aside her quill and stood. She headed towards me with a purposeful stride.   
I still wasn’t allowed to move until Pompfrey had scanned me with her wand. Her spell made my teeth buzz, I didn’t like that. She chided me for reckless behavior but I shrugged it off because I knew Neville would have been a lot worse off if I hadn’t done what I did. When she found me fit and healthy, I was officially released and free to head to breakfast.   
Before closing the curtain for my privacy, the matron gave a soft glare to the little elf and then walked away with her head held high or so I would imagine. The little elf took no notice of this as she was already laying out clean clothes for me on the bed and had my bag ready for the day. Potions was first off and I don’t think anybody was going to let me skip that.   
Jubilee had fixed my tie because I was rubbish at it. The elf spent the entire time chiding for getting hurt. Also for no one telling her about it. Then she sent me on my way with a warning not to get hurt again.   
My trio of friends and Ron looked unrested and miserable when I arrived at the table. I was worried when I received a lukewarm greeting, Hermione and Neville were too busy glaring at Harry and Ron. Won’t lie, I was very curious as to why the two parties were acting the way they were but I could see the storm clouds brewing. Smart sailors steer away from rough waters and hurricane skies; I slid down the table to sit with Angelina Johnson, Katie Bell and the Weasley twins.   
“Heard you did a nice bit of flying, little lion,” Angelina greeted me and mussed up my hair, laughing when I swatted at her hands “should have been you getting the empty seeker spot on the team instead of Harry.”  
I raised an eyebrow at her “what?” the older kids chuckled “pretend I just spent the night in the infirmary and have no idea what’s going on.”  
Fred chuckled, I knew it was him because he had a small freckle by his left nostril “method acting, I like it!” he said leaning across the table to whisper loudly “okay, get this, after you and Neville were taken to the infirmary, as Ronikins tells it, Malfoy found Neville’s rememberall on the ground where it’d fallen out of his pockets.”  
“Need to get that boy buttons for those pockets,” George said in the same breathe picking up from his brother in the same loud whisper “so our Illustrious Harry Potter does the brave Gryffindor thing and demands it back. There’s typical Slytherin/Gryffindor banter and Malfoy takes off on his broom with Harry following.”  
The twins were in sync now, going back and forth; it was sort of dizzying “there’s more bantering and mid-air antics before Malfoy gives the rememberall a throw, shouldn’t have gone far though he has chicken wings for arms…”  
“…and our Prized Potter takes off after with such gumption that he impresses a passing McG…”   
“…but McG doesn’t expel the Harry the Fabulous, but takes him to Wood, instead and says…”  
There was a Scottish accent now “…Woud, I’ve found you a seekerrr…” that r was held causing everyone to laugh  
“…when Malfoy found out, he was livid. I think he really wanted our Harry the Amazing out of Hogwarts…”  
“…so the little weasel picks a fight with the Potter Extraordinaire and Neville with Ron not helping one little bit to stave off bad results…”  
“…in fact, Ronikins helps Malfoy, in a roundabout way, to get the Esteemed Potter to agree to an honor duel at midnight last night in the trophy room…”  
“…somehow, Hermione and Neville get dragged into despite Hermione keeping up calling the trio of primeros anos idiots all night…”  
“…turns out that Malfoy was lying to Harry the Fantastic and it was a set up to get them caught by Filch…”  
“…Hermione pulled their butts out of the fire, though I’m sure something else happened that their not talking about…”  
“…but when they got back last night, Hermione was very loudly explaining to them why they were idiots all over again…”  
I just blinked at the twins before looking over at my friends and Ron “bloody hell, can’t leave them on their own or they’ll end up burning the place down...ow!” I looked to Angelina who’d smacked me upside the head.  
The older girl glared playfully at me and chided “little girls shouldn’t use that type of language.”


	6. Family History

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> see chapter one

Chapter Six: Family History 

The rest of breakfast was spent theorizing what caused the group of First Year Gryffindors to look so glum and murderous towards each other, George’s favorite theory (and most hopeful) had been that they’d managed to kill Mrs. Norris and that Filch was looking for his beloved cat’s slayers but the group had taken a vow of silence. He predicted that either Ron or Neville would crack first. Fred was willing to throw his coin in on Ron; they had so much hope for their brother…  
Katie was happy to kill that theory before we had to head to class. She’d seen the red-eyed cat in question hissing at a group of Hufflepuffs earlier that morning. Then, before we left, the betting shifted to when the group would notice that I was out of the infirmary. The girls had the start of potions, I had the end of potions and the twins had lunch; we were playing for sickles and a prank. It was a friendly wager, loser had to cough up the silver coins and pull a prank on the person of the winner’s choice.   
Blast it all if the twins didn’t win! It wasn’t until I was sitting down beside Hermione for lunch that she finally realized I was there. She blinked at me several times before launching towards me for a hug. I’d sat beside her in Potions, worked with Neville during the practical bit, keep Malfoy from putting extra bits in Harry’s potion and now was when they noticed me because of Hermione’s squeal of joy. Over Hermione’s shoulder I saw Angelina and Katie handing the boys seven sickles each when Hermione loudly asked when Pompfrey had let me go.  
“This morning,” I answered when I finally detached my friend from my person “I even said hello to you lot, sensed trouble so I moved over to ask the twins,” I looked to Harry and glared, he squirmed a little in his seat “what were you thinking getting in to a duel with a boy who grew up in the magical world, whose probably learned more than one nasty spell from his father when you’ve had under two weeks of learning and could kick your ass in seconds because he’s a better understanding of magic at this point? Come on, Potter, tell me!”  
The squirming got worse and he mumbled “he said that I was hiding behind a false heir and I was no better than my worthless father who always hid behind my mum.”  
Ron slammed his fist down “the blonde weasel deserved it!”  
“Ya know, Ron, you best be careful of who you call a weasel when your name is so close to it,” I snapped “you could have gotten Harry seriously hurt!” I growled at him “give Harry a few years of learning some proper spells and wand work and maybe he’d be ready for a duel, I’d even put money on him. He hasn’t even the stamina to carry out a duel. We do what? Maybe three, four spells a day if we’re lucky? How many do you think he’s cast? You all forget that I was raised in this world by a bloody bastard who thrived on duels when he could and loved to lecture about it.”  
“But we’re not supposed to do magic outside of school,” Ron frowned “not till we’re 17!”  
Neville snorted “that law was mostly written for muggle-borns or half-bloods who live with muggles, totally in pure-bloods favor, like I said last night!” he rolled his eyes “pure-bloods are rarely around muggles and who’s to say who it was when you have more than one child or house elves. Gran always said that the trace can’t distinguish between elven magic and accidental magic because of how wild they both are. Come on, think about it!”  
“How do you two know this?!” Ron screeched angrily   
“WE LISTEN!” I hissed “if you’d close your mouth and open your ears then you’d learn important things too! Also not everyone has the same values and senses of morals that you do, otherwise everyone would be in the same damn house!”  
“Told you two you were being dumb,” Hermione folded her arms victoriously and glared at Ron “you should really learn when to pick your battles.”  
“We were standing up for you, you ungrateful bitch!” Ron screamed at me, his words echoed down the hall and got the teachers’ attention.  
I sighed heavily as McGonagall turned on her heel just meters from us down the table and came back towards us “thanks but there are better ways to go about that and I can always handle my cousin. I owl his mother all the time.”   
The professor came to stand behind an angry/shamefaced Ron “what was that Mister Weasley?” she asked tersely, her toe tapping very prominently heard “would you like to repeat what you just screamed for the whole hall to hear and disgraced my house?”   
He looked at me when he spoke “she was being ungrateful that we stood up to her against that slimy snake, friends are grateful that friends stand up for each other!”  
“Friends don’t call friends names like that in anger,” she countered “come along, I think we best have this talk in my office.”  
Ron left but gave me a two fingered salute behind McGonagall’s back which the twins booed thunderously. I had the feeling Ronald was going to get another howler. The first one hadn’t been very pleasant as Molly Weasley’s voice reverberated and boomed out through the hall: RONALD BILIOUS WEASLEY! HOW DARE YOU START A FIGHT ON THE HOGWARTS EXPRESS! YOU HAVEN’T EVEN ARRIVED AT SCHOOL YET! WHAT WERE YOU THINKING ATTACKING THE HEIRS OF THE MOST ANCIENT AND NOBLE HOUSES OF LONGBOTTOM AND BLACK?! HOW DARE YOU BREAK YOUR BOTHER’S WAND AND HOW DARE YOU BREAK NEVILLE’S WAND! THOSE COST MONEY! THIS COULD START A FEUD! YOUR FATHER IS WRITING APOLOGY LETTERS AS WE SPEAK TO BEG FORGIVENESS FOR YOUR TEMPER! PUT EVEN A PINKY TOE OUT OF LINE AND I’M HOMESCHOOLING YOU TILL YOU GO FOR YOUR N.E.W.T.S.!   
I was not looking forward to another red envelope attached to crashing owl who was too winded to crawl out of a bowl of crisps. The howler had rendered the hall silent for the rest of the meal, everyone was too afraid to speak lest the howler come back to life and start yelling at them for making noise. Least that’s why I had stayed silent.   
With a deep breath that I held for a second I looked back to Harry before letting the breath out “congratulations on the seeker position as unfair as it was not to be punished for breaking the rules, I wish you all the luck and fun in it,” I told him with a smile “thank you for defending me but know Harry that Draco is ambitious and cunning. He’s never going to meet you in a fair fight, he just wanted to you to get caught out of bounds after curfew.”  
Harry looked up miserably at me, he was spearing at his food with his fork “I know that now,” he muttered “but he was saying some awful stuff and I wanted to stand up for my friends and my parents.”  
I reached across the table and patted his arm comfortingly “thank you but this is why you ignore him and then go to your friendly, neighborhood Weasley twins for a prank or write my Aunt Cissy and have her send him a howler or withhold the care packages.”   
“Or do nothing and not be baited by his childishness,” Hermione countered sternly “not sink to his level at all.”   
Yea…this was a conversation that could go round in circles. I just shrugged and started piling food on my plate, trying not to smile when Hermione silently slid a platter of sliced fruit my way. It was Neville who started the conversation that took up the rest of our lunch hour before Charms.   
He was talking about professional dueling. I had seen one or two bouts when Fraser was sober enough to remember to take me along to them whenever we were in a hosting city, he liked to drink at sporting events. There was more to dueling than slinging random spells at the opposition. I think maybe I had a book about it at home with Aunt Andy.  
It was like a dance, with footwork moves and minimalized wand movements. Training to use silent casting and strengthening mental barriers so one’s opponent didn’t see your next move before you made it. There were elaborate spell combos and literal spell counts, the person who cast the least number of spells got more points. A duel could be won on points like Quidditch could, didn’t matter who caught the golden snitch it was the points that mattered.   
I noticed that both Harry and Hermione were quiet, thinking about what Neville and I’d had talked about. They had asked questions, it’s not like we kept them out of the conversation. I just think that Harry finally realized just how much trouble he could have been in last night if had Draco showed.   
Putting an arm over his shoulder as we walked down the hall, I whispered that real power is in knowledge. The more you know can make even the most unlikely of person dangerous. I also thanked him again, he was a true friend and would always have one in me, also that I wanted a turn on his broomstick when he got one, even if it was a school one. That made him laugh and Hermione to look at us suspiciously like we were planning something. We both held up our hands for peace.   
…………………………………………………………………………………………….

As it happened, Ronald Bilious Weasley did not get another howler from his mother just a shite load of detentions to be served with Filch for the use of bad language and goading Harry into an honor duel. Which Ron broke down and confessed too under the threat of having his mother make a personal visit to straighten him out; this meant that Harry, Hermione and Neville had to serve a night’s detention with Ron because they’d been out after curfew.  
The three tried not to hold this against Ron, McGonagall did play a low handed card after all. For which I mentioned to McGonagall when I finally got to meet up with her for our chat that second Saturday. That first weekend had been taken up by the Weasley twins’ back to school pranks that flooded the ground floor with pink and purple bubbles that smelled like green apple of all things. When I say ‘flooded’ I mean that the bubbles had taken over, floor to ceiling and wall to wall. Sunday had found the Great Hall mimicking a skating rink.   
Finally I was going to get to the stoic but temperamental Scottish woman! I had figured out the past summer that she had answers I needed and I had always wondered what it would be like to have a grandmother. Granted I was only willing to give her one chance at it. I had not forgotten how she’d acted at Gringotts or at Fraser’s but damn it! I really wanted answers!  
Questions had kept popping up and there were so many of them that I had written the most nagging ones down. So when that Saturday came, I found myself in McGonagall’s office for something like brunch, I think. Her desk had been cleared and there was finger foods with tea and a lot of ginger newts in an open tartan colored tin. She seemed nervous of all things (I’m convinced that nervousness is one of the three basic emotions of Hogwarts. There’s happiness, confusion and nervousness. The jury is still out on pain).   
“So,” the older witch pour us both a cup of tea to keep her hands busy the pervious conversation had lapsed “you’ve had an interesting start to term, how do you take your tea?” she asked looking up   
“Wet.” I shrugged and laughed at my own joke.   
McGonagall just rolled her eyes at me and tossed in a sugar cube and a bit of milk before passing me my cup. I stirred the concoction while she made a second identical cup and sat back in her chair doing the same as myself. The tea wasn’t half bad, I prefer the sweat tea from in the style made in Southern American states. Peach tea is also good.   
“So, why was I raised by Fraser?” I asked suddenly catching the older woman off guard with her floral teacup half way to her lips “I know that you have a daughter that lives in New York, I think, and a son who operates a whiskey distillery in Edinburgh. Fraser liked to complain that he wasn’t allowed near it because people were afraid for their product.”  
McGonagall frowned “it was because Blake wasn’t as well known in connection to your father and myself after the war and he traveled a lot. Like young Mr. Weasley, a lot of people were looking for retribution after the war. War can bring out the worst in people and they weren’t above using you to hurt Bellatrix,” McGonagall explained “Blake maybe rough around the edges but he protected you and raised you the best he could with help from Miss Parmenter.”  
“Rough around the edges?” I asked bluntly “he’s an asshole!” the woman looked at me disapprovingly “you didn’t live with him,” I shrugged in defense “I’ve seen things no kid should see. I know about things I shouldn’t know about until I’m older! I don’t feel like I’m turning twelve in November! You have no idea how hard it is to relate to kids my age and aggravating it is to keep having to explain things to them that I should be learning with them!”  
“Tis the price to be paid for making sure you are still alive, my dear,” McGonagall stated sadly “you know that things were so much different before you were born. War twisted the truth of so many things and a lot of them I’m not proud of. Such as when I threatened my own son with disownment when he tried to go save his wife.”  
I waited but the woman seemed to have gotten lost in her head “explain…”   
The Scotswoman looked up at me, her eyes weary and sad “your parents were so happy in their marriage but they had gone through with it against the wishes of their own parents. The Blacks have always been a dark family and I was afraid that Bellatrix would lure my son away from his moral standing that your grandfather and I had taught him. I had already lost my siblings to Tom Riddle,” I raised an eyebrow questioningly “he renamed himself Lord Voldemort, was out of Hogwarts three years before I arrived but I heard the stories,” she explained “as I was saying, I’d lost my brothers to the mad man and my eldest son. I didn’t want to lose anyone else.”  
I nodded, the fear of loss was understandable “what did you mean by him ‘saving’ his wife?”  
McGonagall set her teacup and saucer down and folded her hands in her lap “had either of your aunts told you about your mother, by chance?”  
“No,” I shook my head “I just know what Uncle Ted said at Gringotts but I didn’t really ask once the words ‘Bella’ and ‘Azkaban’ were used in the same sentence. All Aunt Cissy wanted to talk lessons for me to be a proper heir and Aunt Andy just wanted me to enjoy my summer as much as a kid could,” I shrugged “they argued over the history and etiquette books Aunt Cissy had given me…and Jubilee. That was almost a screaming match actually.”  
The professor tilted her head a little “what about your father?”  
I shrugged again “I learned not to ask questions about my parents till now. Another lesson from dear Fraser.”  
McGonagall let out an angry sigh “that’s a conversation he and I will assuredly have,” she growled before letting out a long, calming breath “all those things that Ted said at Gringotts were certainly true about Bellatrix. She was incredibly smart, as kind and compassionate as circumstances would allow, very adept at her lessons and made the chaser position for Slytherin her second year,” the woman allowed a small smile to grace her lips for nostalgia’s sake “and she very much had my son wrapped around her finger. Robert was a Ravenclaw, surprisingly, and found Bellatrix’s intelligence enthralling. He played seeker, became an animagus in his fifth year when normally that’s a seventh year elective,” she chuckled at that “they were a quite the match. Dating whilst here at Hogwarts and ran off to be married when Bellatrix had graduated and your father was just turned seventeen.”  
“Why?” I asked, setting down my empty teacup   
At this the woman frowned again “because Cygnus had offered Bellatrix’s hand to Rodolphus Lestrange and the bride was informed not asked. They were to be wed the moment Bellatrix was out of school but young love defied that.”   
“How does all that lead to him having to save her?” I felt like I was missing something   
McGonagall busied herself by filling my teacup again, with sugar and milk, and filled a small plate with biscuits and little pies. She pushed the plate towards me and told me to eat one. The plate was half gone when she decided to answer my question.   
“Six months after you were born, Bellatrix was captured by her ex-groom’s brother. She’d tried to stay out of the war but Dumbledore made a deal with her to play spy for our side, or at least try to get information while protecting Narcissa, she tried to play neutral potions maker. The youngest Black had been given an arranged marriage as prestigious as possible to make up for Andromeda and Bellatrix’s discretions. That meant Lucius Malfoy, heir of a very wealthy family in their own right,” McGonagall didn’t sound happy about Dumbledore’s arrangement, not happy at all “after she was taken, Robert tried so hard to get her back before anything happened to her but failed and paid with his life. Our best guess is that Voldemort used some dark ritual on Bellatrix to sever her magical bond with Robert and twist her to his own dark end; married her to Lestrange. Thus the Death Eater was born.”  
“Huh,” I sat back to process this.   
Bella + Robert = nerdy love + looming arranged marriage= magical elopement. Okay that made sense. They just wanted to be together and live happy lives, any couples’ dream. Bellatrix wasn’t a bad person, a little tough to comprehend and picture given her life sentence in Azkaban but okay. I could go with that. It somewhat fit the picture I was making in my head.   
She would have been captured in April of 1980, a year and some months before the Dark Ass-hat went down for the count. That still left liked nine or so years of the war unaccounted for, I’m not even sure what the hell that timeline would even look like for the parental units. Or what McGonagall meant by ‘neutral potions maker’. How’d that even work? Weren’t Voldemort’s people like, ride or die…literally?  
For ever one question answered three more popped up, now that…is a tale as old as time. I pulled out my notebook and pen, quills were a pain and I didn’t like the ink wells they required (I’m clumsy and ink stains are not a good wardrobe choice for me). On a blank sheet I started writing out the information given. One column for the father and one for the mother. Still didn’t get out Dumbledore’s arrangement would have worked, or what the endgame was. Ya know, beyond ending the Dark Ass-hat.   
I looked back up at an amused McGonagall “so how did that lead to me being with Fraser, beyond him being able to protect me?” I asked “why not send me to your daughter or give me to Aunt Andy? Nym seemed perfectly safe and she was born in 73’.”   
“Different times, lass, the war took a lot from a lot of people,” she shrugged “I had you for a while, actually. Until you were two. Bridget and her partner were just settling across in Massachusetts with little ones of their own; another would have floundered them at the time,” McGonagall said softly “and Fergus had just watched his wife fall to his sister-in-law. You wouldn’t have been safe with him, he wasn’t safe with himself. It was too painful to look at you and see your parents so clearly in you, even at a young age. You are them, perfectly blended,” she smiled then but it didn’t last long “and it hurts. Pain makes people do strange things like trying to distance themselves.”  
“Why’d Fergus disown me then?” I wanted to know “he’s the one who filed the papers, Aunt Cissy said they were nine or ten years old?”  
“They were drawn up when you were six months and they included Robert,” McGonagall scowled angrily “you are the eldest of my grandchildren, as it happens. Just months older than Bridget’s twins and five years older than Fergus’s eldest son. That would have put you next in line for Laird when I step down. Tomas was my eldest, he passed without an heir. Then Robert, he had you but without you the title would have fallen to Fergus. If he didn’t have an heir then it would have passed to Bridget,” the professor explained “Fergus still hates your mother.”  
I nodded, I understood now “with me disowned, then he gets the title and eliminated the Bella connection at the same time. I was getting close to the age of acknowledgement…is that right?” I asked “when a child is old enough to be legally considered an heir?”  
The older witch nodded “yes, at ten or eleven. I was planning on this past summer for your acknowledgement for as my heir, in fact. I didn’t handle that very well.”  
I shook my head “nope, not really,” that reminded me of something “why the orphan fund?”  
McGonagall blinked, surprised “I’d forgotten about that. I had hoped to keep you low key, hidden from the newsmongers…which I failed. Your name and parentage on Bella’s part was all over the summer papers.”  
I shrugged “wouldn’t know, don’t read them.”  
“Well, they were,” she assured me “you would have had to been accepted as heir to house Black by Wizengamot, which would have been announced in the paper, in order to get into their vaults. Fergus, I know for a fact, had asked to be alerted if I drew money out for your supplies,” she growled at that “I don’t know what he had planned but I was trying to avoid it. I was planning on supplementing the low funds but was beat to the punch by Andromeda and Narcissa. They’d already claimed you, I think Kaylee had something to do with it.”   
“Wouldn’t know,” I said again “I was just as surprised as you were. More so in fact,” I sniggered then “ya know, this all sounds like back door politics and cold war spy games.”   
McGonagall snorted “you’ve no idea.”  
I chuckled at that before something in her words sparked a question “wait, were you the one who bought me extra things at Ollivander’s and Gorgo?” I asked   
McGonagall’s eyes went wide and she gaped at me, her cheeks reddened a bit “I…I…yes,” she wiggled in her hair and cleared her throat “I did, actually. Did you like them?”  
I grinned “I loved them!” her lips moved to mimic my own “see!” I held up my left hand to show my holstered wand “and Gorgo left just this morning with some letters. Tiberius, my shadow cat, is probably loving up on Hermione right now or torturing Ron’s rat. Keep telling Ron to get the rat a cage. Maybe that’s what I’ll get him and Neville for Christmas, cages for their pets.”  
That made the stern Scots chuckle heartily “so why the name Gorgo? What is that?”  
“Oh,” I grinned “when Fraser had us in Greece, Kaylee took me on a tour of famous places where we’d stop and we had stopped at Sparta. Sparta was ruled by two dual kings, one for politics and one for war, that way if war did come then Sparta would always have her king. So when Persia launched an attack for multiple different reasons,” I gleefully explained “Athens went around asking for help and Leonidas agreed to help even though the various oracles were saying that if Sparta went to war she’d lose her king. Gorgo was Leonidas’s wife and the mother of his son. Leonidas and his 300 Spartans stood with the six thousand other Greeks at the mountain pass of Thermopylae and brought the might of the Persian army to a grinding halt. I loved the fact that one Persian stated that their ‘arrows out blot out the sun’ and one Spartan replied simply that they’d just have to ‘fight in the shade’,” true historical lines from Herodotus the Historian “they all died, mostly, with Leonidas but I liked the story thus the name Gorgo the Queen of Sparta graces my owl.”  
McGonagall looked amused, damn she was on a rollercoaster of emotions today, “I see that Kaylee Parmenter was very effectual at teaching you,” she sounded pleased with herself now “she came very highly recommended from Ilvermorny, Thunderbird house. I’m curious, has anyone asked why you have a more American accent than an English one?”  
I made to answer quickly but stopped and blinked at her “no, they haven’t…that’s so weird! Ya’d think Ronald would have brought that up at some point but it seems no one really cares, I guess.”  
“Interesting,” McGonagall tapped her fingers on her desk “guess they’ve been more interested in your name than how you talk.”  
“Maybe.” I shrugged


	7. Devil’s Night

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> behold! chapter one

Chapter Seven: Devil’s Night

As it happened two things took place on September the 19th. The first was Hermione’s birthday and the second being Aunt Cissy sending me a small strange book on ghosts, ghouls and pesky, hard to get rid of lingering souls. This was in a care package (small box, magic involved, bigger on the inside) like the one she’d sent Draco the day before, it was mixed up with numerous small cookie tins (all different flavors), sacks of candies, fuzzy socks and a sweater with moving characters, shampoo and conditioner (marketed potions in reality), several letters and a whole big box of Chocolate Frogs that had a tag that read: for Hermione, happy birthday. Sweet!  
Hermione looked perplexed when I handed over the box and told her that my Aunt, which Hermione had met once, had sent her something. It made me smile when Hermione’s face turned beet red when she read the tag. While everyone was oohing over Hermione’s gift, I was stuffing the now closed up care package into my bag.   
“Why’d you get that?” Ron asked looking hungrily at the image of the bouncing frog on the front of the book   
Hermione shrugged “because it’s my birthday but I certainly wasn’t expecting a gift from your Aunt Cissy, Athena. I thought she didn’t like muggle-borns?”  
I shrugged digging back into my breakfast “hard to say why the woman does anything. Aunt Andy once just told me to just go with it, unless it involved murder or human sacrifice.”  
“She was joking about the human sacrifice…right?” Neville asked, a little pale “cause Gran got an invitation to their Christmas Ball.”  
I grinned wickedly and shrugged “you never know, Neville, that’s the point. You…never…know…ow!”   
Hermione glared at me as she slapped Ron’s hand away from the box “you’re scaring him and Ronald, stop that! Mine, if you ask nicely I’ll share, later!”   
“But it the rare card box,” he whined “limited additions and flavored chocolates. It has the chance to have the white chocolate frog, it has the rarest and most valuable card in it!”  
I looked past Hermione “it surprises me sometimes just what you are actually willing to learn about, Mr. Weasley,” he glared at me, Hermione used the distraction to stuff the frog box away in her bag for safety “maybe this could be used to our advantage and your grades.”  
“What do you mean?” Ron asked suspiciously   
Harry snorted “I think she means rewarding you for good grades?” he chuckled when I nodded “I also bet that means you can’t ask Hermione to do your homework for you either.”   
“I still don’t understand,” Ron shook his head “what’d ya?”  
I sighed “for now, Aunt Cissy has given me more cookies than I could ever possibly hope to eat without dying a sugary death,” Hermione rolled her eyes at my dramatics but was still smiling “I’d be willing to let you have a few tins if you’d stop asking Hermione to do your homework for you and you just ask for help instead.”   
Ron’s eyes narrowed “you can’t bribe me, Black.” He said before getting up and heading off to class early.  
“Can I have the cookies in his stead?” Harry asked curiously hopeful, and this was why Harry was one of my best friends.   
I grinned at him “I honestly think that she sent what she did so I could share, so yes, Harry, you may but after Hermione’s birthday party…hey!”   
Hermione had grabbed my shoulder and started shaking me “no!” she cried softly “no parties, parties are embarrassing. I don’t like them, bad experiences!”  
I held up my hands for peace “it’s out of my hands, Hermione, Jubilee was informed already.”  
“No!” Hermione whined and smacked her head against my shoulder a few times “why did you did that!”  
“Wasn’t me,” I told her “I believe that it was Nym. Aunt Andy had called for the elf several days ago. That’s all I know.”   
Hermione refused to talk to me for the rest of the morning. Through Charms and Herbology, even refusing to look at me. When we got to the Great Hall for lunch I actually started to fear for my life, all the tables were littered with small birthday cakes of all colors, shapes and flavors. I sat with Angelina and the twins instead of a glaring Hermione who was popping Gryffindor themed balloons that read: Happy Birthday Hermione! She was stabbing them with her quill. The older students seemed like a safer seating arrangement.  
McGonagall raised an eyebrow when Hermione sat with Eloise, Lavender and Parvati across the room. I frowned, mouthed ‘later’ and the lesson began. When the class was over, Hermione growled at me for ‘letting’ her win the race to accomplish the spell first. She stomped on my foot and then stomped away, leaving me hopping in place holding my foot and most of the class plus McGonagall gaping at the girl. Harry and Neville helped me a chair to sit down, Ron sniggered and Draco looked confused.   
“What did she do that for?” Draco asked perplexed   
I looked at him “because she’s upset that Jubilee is doing something for her birthday.”  
Draco shivered “I’m glad you got that elf instead of me; crazy that one.”  
“Hey, Draco,” I called as he turned to leave with the rest of the class and Ron “you got a moment?”  
He frowned “what do you want? Going to tell my mother on me again?”  
“No,” I shook my head “but I was wondering if you knew about a book about ghost, ghouls and pesky souls.”  
Draco raised a blonde eyebrow and folded his arms across his chest, then stopped whatever he was going to say when he saw that McGonagall was lingering by the door “maybe,” he said “why don’t you meet me in the library tomorrow after last class. Time cousins should talk.”  
“We’re coming with her,” Harry stated firmly “so no funny business!”  
Draco just shrugged and walked away. McGonagall gave me a look of sympathy as I limped by her through the door, Hermione had used her heel. The staying away from Hermione for safety reasons persisted through DADA and flying lessons. Even after dinner, where I spent the hour reading the book Aunt Cissy had sent, and back in the festively decorated Gryffindor common room where Hermione was receiving her presents from all who knew. Jubilee brought the ones from Aunt Andy, Uncle Ted and Nym while the twins had scrounged up a two large cases of butterbeer (they must have used the sickles they won from out bets and yes…I did pay up but was still waiting on pranking instructions). The biggest surprise was when a very beautiful and regal barn owl came through an open window and landed on the arm rest of Hermione’s chair, presenting her its letter laden leg.   
“Oh!” Hermione gasped while reading the letter, pausing to look up at the beautiful bird “well, hello, you’re for me?” she asked and the bird nodded causing Hermione to grin “mum said she named you Leonidas?” the bird nodded again and I raised an eyebrow at that “I guess this explains the owl treats that Nym gave me and the perch,” the bird just ruffled it’s feathers as if to shrug.  
Hermione was busy with the bird when I headed up to our dorm room. There was homework to be done and the common room was busy and I didn’t feel like walking to the library. I’m certain there’s a Hermione shaped bruise on the top of my foot. Before I nudged my shoes off, I placed my gift for Hermione on her pillow. It was something that I had written Nym about and she helped me procure it.   
I’d been sitting at the small table that Jubilee had added to the room, it’s where she left treats from time to time, working on my Charms homework when Hermione came in. Eloise wasn’t far behind helping Hermione to carry her numerous presents. I glanced over as the presents were unloaded on Hermione’s bed and Eloise headed back down to join the party, then I went back to my homework.   
“How comes you’re not downstairs?”   
I looked up as Hermione sat down in the seat next to mine, my gift for her in her hands “because you’re mad at me and I didn’t want to ruin the party,” I told her with a shrug “and this paper on Devil’s Snare isn’t going to write itself…well, unless I had one of those auto-quills or the ones you can dictate too.”  
Hermione giggled at that but then frowned “I’m sorry for being at you, Athena. It’s just that I’ve never had a real birthday party before. No one would ever show in I was in primary and so I just ask mum and dad to stop having them,” she admitted nervously playing with my gift “so we just had family outings instead.”  
“I understand more than ya think, Hermione,” I laid down my pen “Kaylee was the only one to ever celebrate my birthday when I was younger. Made sure that I got at least a cupcake or a treat of some and that was it. It was just another day to Fraser.”  
Hermione frowned at that “when is your birthday?”   
I shrugged “sometime in November. After Halloween and before December. Not like we had calendars when traveling,” I nudged her shoulder with mine, I was kidding a little but not really. My birthday was the 5th of November “enough about me, birthday girl, open the gift.”  
It was with a huff that Hermione let me know that she was letting the subject of my birthday rest but she wasn’t letting it die. With great care to keep the paper intact, Hermione opened the gift to find a white box. In the box was a watch. It was a tradition to give wizards pocket watches when they came of ages, witches got wrist watches when they turned twelve (I think it was just to stick it to the male dominated society).   
Hermione’s was one that I’d seen in that second hand store over the summer and had Nym get for me (luckily it was still there). The watch itself was a treasure of a find, it was Scandinavian made (dwarvian craftwork) with an oval shape, wands for hands and Victorian style numbering and intricate engravings of leaves and vines along the edges. This design continued onto the new bands of dragon leather in silver embroidery thread, the old bands had been rotting and cracked.   
“It’s a tradition for witches to get watches on their twelfth birthdays,” I explained “this one is dwarvian made, which makes it pretty much anything-proof. You have to wind it just once so it’ll recognize you as its new owner. Don’t let anybody else do this, ever, or they’ll gain ownership of it,” I emphasized that explicitly “it’s charmed so if you lose it, it’ll always come back to you.”  
Hermione just grinned as she wound the watch, looking to my alarm for the right time before putting it on and swearing for it never to come off (except for showers). Then she hugged me tightly, choking me as she did so before she ran off to get her own homework and a couple chocolate frogs and two butterbeers that one the twins had put in Eloise’s arms on the girls’ way out of the common room.   
The frog I got was orange flavored and had Harry Houdini for the card. He was an illusionist and escape artist and one of the few wizards to pull of using magic in front of muggles before the International Wizarding Confederation (IWC) put an end to his career. One of his helpers had to be oblivated, his memory wiped after seeing Houdini use wand magic for a stunt set up. I have the card to Hermione, it was hers after all no matter how much she argued to the different.   
Hermione got Paracelsus, a Swiss wizard who dabbled in alchemy, healing, herbology and laid the foundations for Nicholas Flamel’s work on the Philosopher’s Stone. Her frog was flavored like green apples. She beamed happily at the start of her new card collection, making a list of everyone she’d have to send a thank you card to.   
……..  
Somehow I knew the meeting with Draco would be dramatic. I just didn’t expect it to be Hermione who was going to get cross and storm off. Aunt Cissy had convinced her husband that for the sake of their son’s education, Cuthbert Binns had to go. He’d been at Hogwarts as a ghost when Narcissa and Lucius were children in attendance, putting students to sleep even then.  
Problem being, one word: Dumbledore. The headmaster saw no problems with the way that the ghost was handling the classes (he just didn’t want to pay anyone else to take it over, that’s my theory). Never mind the fact that no ever passed the O.W.L.S with anything more than T’s (T is for troll, troll=bad) and in-class grades never fared much better. Lucius had argued to the school board that magical beings were losing their history through this farce of a class.  
Only thing that came out of that meeting was the school got new brooms after Lucius had mentioned the incident with me and Neville. Augusta Longbottom was quite irate about that, or so Aunt Cissy wrote, she hadn’t heard her grandson and heir had been injured and needed a trip to the infirmary. I wasn’t sure to feel sorry for Neville or Dumbledore when Augusta got a hold of either one.   
This led Aunt Cissy to sending me the book and marking the chapter about exorcising ghosts and that lead to Hermione’s outburst that nearly got us kicked out of the library. Draco, Harry and Neville agreed to a temporary truce. Mostly because Draco wanted to pull of something this big under Dumbledore’s nose and the other two boys didn’t want me to be expelled…no one would suspect Slytherins and Gryffindors working together with our houses being rivals.  
According to the book, the easiest night to do this was also the most dangerous. The Devil’s Night, the night before All Hollow’s Eve when the veil between worlds was the thinnest. It’s also called Spirit’s Night because spirits more abundant and slightly stronger. This meant that Binns could physically harm us during the ritual.   
We used Jubilee to round up the necessary ingredients. Candles, rock salt (lots of rock salt) chalk, loads of frankincense and sage (I think the elf stole Quirrell’s entire stash with the amount she brought back) and a yellow crystal pendent (stolen from that strange divinations teacher the twin’s complain about) as a focus to send Binns on to the afterlife. However, nowhere in these plans did we factor Ron Weasley following us (minus Hermione who was very much opposed to this) out to meet Draco.   
I wanted to kill him and stuff him in a wall crevice and blame it on the ghosts or Filch; Draco was in agreement. It was Harry and Neville who were the voices of reason and said we should let him participate, he’d get expelled too if caught. That alone was enough to get Ron to keep his mouth shut, that and a ride on Harry’s new broom that’d arrived the day after Hermione’s birthday.   
We arrived just after curfew after everyone had gone to bed which gave us time to set up before midnight. Harry and I placed the candles and poured the rock salt to ring the room while the other three boys drew the symbols and circles on the floor. The rock salt would keep other ghosts out when we summoned Binns to the room and the candles would reinforce that to keep…other…things out that would be attracted by our summoning.   
When that was done, as there was five of us, we each took a position at each of the five points of the summoning star just outside of the circle that cut through it. It had been a coin toss between me and Draco as to whose Latin speaking skills were better; Draco won. This meant that Draco was at the head of the circle with the book and pendant in hand.   
“Right,” the blonde boy nodded “we’ve got candles and salt in place, yes?” Harry and I nodded, we’d double checked to make sure we hadn’t missed anything “good, we have the circle and star correct with the center being the trap,” Draco did a quick inspection of the chalk work “seems right…now remember, once the ritual starts, DON’T MOVE OR BAD THINGS WILL HAPPEN,” he emphasized emphatically glaring at Ron and Neville “brake the circle and other, nastier creatures can come through no matter the protections we have…got it?”  
“Why are we doing this?” Ron whined nervously   
“No talking, Weasley, just nod or shake your head,” Draco snapped “now don’t panic when you feel a tug on your magic, means the ritual is working…or so the book says,” he took a big breath “here we go.”  
Draco held the pedant up high and started chanting in the dead language. That ‘tug’ Draco mentioned was more like a stomach ripping yank as the circle in the started to glow, pulling our magic to it to power the ritual. I wasn’t paying attention to the words but focusing to staying on my feet and not being yanked to the circle. We all gasped a little when Professor Binns suddenly bloomed into existence with a ‘pop’, think balloon popping. Holy shite! It worked!  
“What are you children doing?” the elderly ghost demanded and tried to float out of the trap “what?” he damned when he couldn’t “I demand you release me at once!”  
“Draco!” I shouted “finish it!”  
That snapped Draco out of his stunned daze. He began chanting again but something was wrong as the yellow crystal began to glow. Binns started screaming and his image started vibrating almost violently so that he was just a bluish shape. The pull on my magic was twisting my guts and making me want to throw up. This wasn’t supposed to happen but it was too dangerous to stop, there are horror stories about it!   
I thought everything was going to go sideways when I looked over and seen Ron turning as green as I felt. He looked wobbly on his feet, starting to sway. Neville didn’t look any better and Harry was gritting his teeth fighting to stay in place. Binns’s scream were soul piercing and beyond everything else I was expecting Filch to start busting down the door. I was actually looking towards the shut and locked door when the center of the room seemed to explode with such tremendous force that we were all tossed backwards like rag dolls, and covered in this clear freezing goop.   
“What the bleeding fuck?” Ron screamed, his fingers digging in his ears to get rid of the ringing “what the bloody hell just happened?”   
Draco was wiping the ectoplasm from his eyes “that was a true exorcism instead of a helping Binns go to the afterlife like we were trying to do. Who messed up the bleeding circle?”   
“Doesn’t matter,” Harry shook his head as he used a desk to drag himself to his feet “half the castle could have heard that, we need to get this cleaned up and get out of here before Filch or worse get here!”  
“What’d you say, Harry?” Ron asked loudly   
With a grunt I did the same as Harry, used a desk and started kicking at the salt link and blowing out candles before yelling for Jubilee. The little elf popped into existence, took one look around and then ordered us all to leave right that instant and to leave the crystal. Draco promised to send the book back to his mom and then we did as the elf ordered. We all ran.   
How we weren’t caught is beyond me, at least us Gryffindors because I wasn’t sure about Draco. He had further to go and a greater chance of getting caught. Before getting back to the tower, I made the boys stop in a bathroom and wash up as best they could. My hands were shaking and I knew that if any of the professors were to ask the Fat Lady if any of us were out past curfew we’d be screwed.   
“How are we going get passed the Fat Lady?” Harry asked, we were hidden just inside an empty class room close to the tower. All of us were still damp from our quick rinse.   
Ron started whimpering “they’re going find out! We’re dead,” his lower lip trembled “we’re dead because my mum is going to kills us. She’s going to come here and forego the howler to scream in person and then she’s going to murder us!”  
“Shush,” Neville clamped his hand over Ron’s mouth, the blonde boy gulped “you’re not going to like it and it’s probably going to fail but my uncle, the one who threw me out the window to see if I was a wizard,” that seems counterproductive “taught me a charm to make paper fly. We can use it to get Hermione to open the door.”  
“Who’s scarier?” Harry asked sarcastically, he’s been spending way too much time with me “Ron’s mum who might rain death on us?” he held up one hand “or Hermione with her ‘I told you so! This was against the rules, you’re going to get killed…and/or expelled!’ hmmm?” he held up the other hand as if weighing the options.   
“Hermione won’t get us expelled or murder us,” I pointed out “I think we should go with Neville’s plan.”   
“Meh ooh!” Ron mumbled through Neville’s hand.   
Harry let his hands drop to his sides “beats waiting around here or either morning or professors to find us.”  
Neville let Ron go and started fumbling through his pockets for a pit of parchment and a pencil, muggle fascination of his uncle’s that kept Neville with one in his pocket. Under wand-light the boy quickly wrote a note and with a couple jabs and a word, the paper folded itself into a bird.   
“Go to Hermione!” Neville told it and the little bird took off out an open window.   
From a dark alcove we watched to portrait and waited. Five minutes passed, then ten, then fifteen. I swear I could hear four sets of heart beating uncontrollably. Mixed with that was the sounds of approaching footsteps but I couldn’t determine if they were real or not. Then, like an answer to a fevered prayer, the painting finally swung open and Hermione’s head stuck out. Four eleven year olds have never moved faster than when we scrambled for that porthole.   
Hermione tried to ask questions, but I just shook my head and shushed her while pulled her towards the dorm. Once there I stripped down with my back facing the room. My tee-shirt and jeans were exchanged for clean pjs, then the filthy clothes were stuffed in a cloth sack and stuffed deep into my trunk.   
I felt tears starting to sting my eyes as I crawled up next to Hermione and cried on my best friend’s shoulder. It hurt to think that we’d destroyed Binns. We destroyed him. There was no happy ending for him. No great classroom in the great beyond. That’s not at all what we were trying to do.   
“I should have listened to you,” I whimpered between Hermione’s soothing noises that she was making “we should have left well enough alone. I chided Harry for not knowing what he was doing taking that duel and here I led into the same damn thing.”   
“What happened?” Hermione asked in a low whisper   
I shut my eyes tight, I could see Binns shuddering and vibrating “we did something wrong and it destroyed him. We just wanted to send him to the afterlife. Where he was supposed to be anyways, not here ruining history class.”  
Hermione sighed heavily and swallowed hard, maybe keeping her words of chiding in “were you hurt at all?”  
I nodded, opening my eyes to look at her “he exploded and sent us flying. Hurt to hit the wall but nothing bad that’ll be permanent.”


	8. Some Serious Trolling Going On

Chapter Eight: Some Serious Trolling Going On 

I was still awake long after Hermione had fallen asleep. Every time I’d closed my eyes, I seen Binns, he was vibrating and screaming or he was coming after me wanting to return the favor of destruction. It was early when I crawled out of Hermione’s bed, gathering my things for a shower and headed that way. I could still feel that goop on me.   
Hermione watched me, Harry, Neville and Ron worriedly as we pushed around the food on our plates. From what I could, Draco wasn’t faring any better over at the Slytherin table. The bookworm was a brave girl as she prodded each of us to eat something. Ron actually growled at her before I slapped him upside the head for that.   
We had charms first and for some reason, Hermione got partnered with Ron to work on the spell wingardium leviosa. Not sure how that happened but I was running on autopilot as I followed Neville to where our feather was waiting. Neville went first but after a fourth attempt all he’d been able to do was to make it hop about a bit.   
My hand was trembling as I made the swish and flick motion with my wand, my voice wavered as I said the incantation. The feather was starting to rise when Flitwick cried happily that Hermione had performed the spell correct. Glancing over, I saw her feather hovering just above her head. Then that twat Seamus had to blow up his and Harry’s feather.   
It was like I was having a panic attack again but I was sweaty and I felt cold. I scrambled back from the desk Neville and I were at, not taking my eyes off of the Irish boy. For a second I felt like I was right back in the History classroom from the night before. Then it hit me, as everyone was looking at me because I’d knocked a desk over and Flitwick was asking me if I was okay, I realized…one: I needed to get out of the classroom and two: the ritual was hitting me harder than I’d thought.   
“Are you feeling well, Miss Black?” Flitwick asked from my elbow and I jumped rather high, it would have been impressive if I hadn’t believed I was having a heart attack right then.   
I shook my head once my feet were back on the ground “no, I think I need the infirmary, thanks.”  
I didn’t wait for permission, just snatched up my book and bag on the way out the door. The infirmary is where I intended to head but it’s not where my feet took me, not at all. Instead they took me all over the castle. I’m not sure how long this last but the first people I bumped into was the twins.   
Fred and George had just come out of a dusty, cobweb filled passageway ahead me, grinning when they noticed me heading towards them. That ended when I mindlessly hugged Fred and kept saying ‘I’m sorry’ over and over again as I started sobbing into his sweater. The twins sounded horrified and uncertain of what to do. Conclusion…get Angelina.   
The twins spilt up, George went to get girl help and Fred got me into an unused class room where we could sit down. I still had a hold of him and I couldn’t make myself let go. He did get me to laugh a bit through my tears by telling me jokes and about pranks he and his brother had pulled. Switching places and confusing their parents and relatives. Fred sounded very relieved when Angelina arrived.   
“Thank Merlin!” Fred cried softly “Angie, how do you make a crying girl stop? Is there an off switch?”   
Angelina snorted “did you ask her what was wrong?”  
“We thought you weren’t supposed to do that!” the twins said together  
I could see Angelina rolling her eyes as she sat down beside Fred so we could see each other “so, little lion,” she said reaching out to tuck a strand of errant hair behind my ear “what’s wrong?”  
“I thought I was helping,” I whimpered “I thought I was smarter than what I am. I did something stupid and I talked others into it.”  
“The twins do that all the time,” the older girl smirked, ignoring the boys’ feigned looks of hurt “but I need more information than that if I’m to help, little lion.”   
I wiped at my nose with my sleeve “promise you won’t tell?”   
“We solemnly swear,” the twins said in unison “we won’t tell.”  
Angelina chuckled at them before nodded “I swear as well, now what’s wrong?”  
I couldn’t look the older girl in the eyes while I said it, looking away I confessed “we tried to banish Binns last night. I just wanted a real teacher not some snooze feast. We had everything we needed but something went wrong. Instead of sending him across the veil, it destroyed him. Big boom, ectoplasm everywhere, he screamed,” they were stunned by that “I didn’t think anyone would get hurt, if Dumbledore just would have bowed to the school board and got a better teacher…”  
“Oh, sweetie,” Angelina spoke first “were you hurt? Who was with you?”  
I looked up at her, she didn’t look mad, just concerned “I have a bruise from when he went boom and there was Harry, Neville, Ron and Draco there. Draco’s Latin was better than mine.”  
Fred snorted “should have known those three were involved, Malfoy’s a surprise though.”  
George knelt down beside Angelina and smiled softly at me “come on, Whiskers, don’t be sad. Binns was just a ghost, just an echo. An imprint of a soul who was scared of death. They maybe sentient but they’re already dead,” I don’t think I’d ever heard twin ever sound so serious or comforting “you didn’t hurt him, Whiskers, you just sent him the long way round to the afterlife. Move of a shove instead of a gentle push.”  
“You’re not joking, are you?” I asked, feeling much lighter for hearing but very scared he was just saying for the sake of saying it, for my benefit.  
George smiled and shook his head “no, Whiskers, I’m not. You just haven’t gotten to ghosts yet in DADA. Peeves likes to make an appearance during that lesson, Quirrell’s probably scared that the poltergeist is going to show and that’s why he hasn’t covered them yet.”  
“It’s true,” Angelina jumped in, tugging on the lank of hair that wouldn’t stay tucked behind my ear “professor before last made a big scene of complaining about the menace. Peeves made it his duty to bug the man until he just quit.”  
I nodded and thought about what they’d said “thank you.”  
“You’re welcome, Whiskers,” Fred grinned “helps one’s manly feelings when cute girls feel comfortable to cry to them.”  
I giggled at that…I mean, chuckled “maybe, but you make a good big bother too. Very squishy,” I teased poking him in the side “hey, why you guys calling me Whiskers anyways?”   
George simple pointed to Angelina “she hath dubbed ye the little lion, lions have whiskers,” he shrugged as if it were that simple.  
“Oh,” I said about the same time that my stomach rumbled like a roar  
The older three laughed heartily at that “yep,” Angelina grinned “you are a little lion with a roar. You weren’t in the Great Hall during lunch so I’m going to assume that you missed it?”  
“Yea,” I nodded “depending upon the time, I also missed several lessons. McGonagall is going to be so happy,” not a happy thought, that.  
The twins smirked “you’re supposed to be in flying right now. That’s okay, Hermione’s not there either.”  
“What?” I demanded, my own problems forgotten, I finally let Fred go from the hug and stood with help from Angelina “what’s wrong with Hermione?”  
George frowned “overheard the Patil girl telling that purple named girl that she heard Hermione in the girls’ bathroom on the first floor near the dungeons crying.”   
I nodded, I needed to go find my friend “thank you for listening to me,” I looked over at Fred “and for letting me cry on you. I really do feel much better now.”  
“Good,” Angelina pulled me into a hug of her own “just don’t do that again, okay? It’s like playing with an Ouija board, you never know what you’re going to open the door for. There are worse things out there than ghosts and poltergeists, little lion.”  
“You really don’t have to worry about that, Angelina,” I promised “I’m never, ever, never, ever, ever doing that again.”  
The older girl held me out at arm’s length “good, and you can call me Angie.”  
I grinned, seriously feeling so much better now. Before I headed off to find Hermione, I gave the three older kids one last hug. They promised to talk with the other three Gryffindors and told me to write Aunt Cissy about Draco. There were just some lines that can’t be crossed no matter how good intentions are, plus it’d look suspicious if someone seen them with him.   
……  
It took twenty minutes to get from where the twins had found me to the area in which Hermione had been rumored to be. Another fifteen to actually find her, crying in the bathroom. She refused to acknowledge me when I knocked on the stall door. Okay, five straight minutes of that had me annoyed, Hermione was being stubborn.   
Plan B…I took the stall next to hers and sat up on the back of the toilet, on top of the tank. Then I preceded to every song I knew the lyrics too…most of the lyrics anyways (I may have made up a few lines here and there). There was Elvis (my impersonation made her giggle, I could hear it), Pink Floyd, Garth Brooks, Chris Ledoux (he sang cowboy music, like real cowboy music), Merle Haggard and I even got to Cyndi Lauper before Hermione gave up and called for a stop. That was good because I needed a drink, my mouth was going dry.   
“First off, you’re horrible!” Hermione cried from her stall after I’d gotten a drink from the sink, which I then promptly used as a seat “all the poor artists would cringe to hear you mucking up their hard work.”  
“Everyone’s a critic,” I smirked a little hoarsely “so, you gonna tell me what’s wrong or shall I bring out the big guns? Hmm? Led Zeppelin, ACDC, Frank Sinatra?”  
“Dear lord, no!” Hermione exited the stall giggling, her eyes were still puffy from crying and there were tear tracks down her cheeks “my father would ban you from the house if he heard you mucking about with his beloved Sinatra. Mum would egg you on but still!”  
“Meh,” I shrugged “if my best friend says no, then I must bow in acquiescence. No Sinatra.”  
Hermione eyed me for a moment before she went to the sink next to me “you are in a much better mood, what happened.”  
I sighed dramatically “the beat freed my soul, hey!” I cried when she splashed me with water “fine, I...I ran into the Weasley twins and literally sobbed on Fred. They had no clue what to do and got Angelina. They helped me to see that we didn’t actually destroy Binns. Just forcefully pushed him on,” Hermione raised an eyebrow at this “Quirrell is afraid of Peeves so no class on ghosts.”  
“Oh,” Hermione looked thoughtful at that “that’s good. You looked really freaked out when Seamus blew up that feather.”  
I nodded “yea, I really wish that damn kid would get that under control,” I growled and then let out a long breath “so, what’s got you locking yourself away like a fair maiden waiting for a traveling troubadour to annoy you out of your regal stall?”   
Hermione smirked and leaned back against the edge of the sink with her arms folded across her chest “Ron’s a jealous, foul git! He snapped at me because he was pronounce the incantation wrong and I tried to help,” she scowled at the memory of his words “I overheard him telling Seamus and Dean that the only reasons I had friends was because you guys were too scared to tell me to go away. That I must have put a spell on the famous Harry Potter for him to even like me at all! He really didn’t have anything kind to say about our friendship, Athena.”  
“Huh,” I could see why that’d upset her “why didn’t you punch him in the nose? I would, still might.”  
Hermione gave me a disapproving look “violence doesn’t solve anything.”  
“Pfft! Tell that to the alpha dogs and bullies,” I shook my head “if you don’t stand up for yourself then you get walked all over. The only time that theory doesn’t stand is if you’re outnumbered or they have the bigger stick,” I jumped down from the counter “now, let’s go get something to eat, I’m….” I stopped when the door started to open and the world ended “holy mother of Goliath,” I gulped painful as I pulled Hermione to stand behind me, putting myself between her and the creature that had just entered the bathroom “that’s a fucking mountain troll!”   
Now this was true fear. The creature was grey skinned, tall as fuck-me-we’re-dead (heard Fraser use that term once, seems to apply), wearing roughly sown together animal pelts as a loincloth and carrying one hellva big stick. Oh, and it had a stupid look on its face as if trying to figure out which wrong turn it took from the Forbidden Forest trying to get to Stupidsville, they wanted their idiot back.   
No! Bad Athena, not the time to mental insult the damn thing, use brain to get you and Hermione out of this without becoming jam on the floor! I berated myself. Trolls are impervious to magic because they have a thick skin, unless it’s a really powerful spell. Yea…I don’t have one of those in my hip pocket. The troll grunted when he saw us and motioned with its club. I don’t blame Hermione for screaming, I really don’t and I hope she forgives me for shoving her.   
Had to, to avoid the oncoming club. The troll roared when it smashed nothing but the counter. It turned and tried again, cutting off our exit to the bathroom door which I was trying to get Hermione too. Mad scramble in the bathroom is never fun. Especially not when I found the spot where the broken water line had found the hand soap dispenser.   
Thank the divines that’s when Harry and Ron showed up. I literally could not move from where I was, it was a slip-n-slide event but with loaming death. Harry and Ron started chucking things at its head, getting its attention.  
There was just glimpses that I caught as I fought to stand, Harry went rodeo on the thing and tried to ride the troll whilst his wand was up its nose. That was until it had him by his ankle. Ron came out big though by LISTENING! Swish, flick, proper enunciation, wham-bam thank you hellish club for the KO!   
“WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?!” McGonagall screamed from the bathroom door as Ron looked pleased with himself, Harry was retrieving his bogie covered wand and Hermione was pulling me out of the bubbly hand soap.   
The transfiguration teacher was accompanied by Snape, Quirrell and Flitwick. They were looking with stunned worry from the demolished bathroom to the troll and to us students. I, however, was busy using the unbroken sink to wash my eyes out…magical soap burns just the same as any other.  
“WELL!” McGonagall screeched   
Hermione spoke first and I couldn’t believe the words that came out her mouth “well, you see, I had read about troll and well…I thought I could handle it. Athena tried talking out of it but came along to keep me out of trouble,” she chuckled nervously then. Oh, there was no way McGonagall was going to buy this “I miscalculated and Harry and Ron saved us.”  
The professors just blinked at Hermione in disbelieve until the troll grunted in its slumber “right, well, that’s…rather a stupid thing to have done, Miss Granger. I would have expected better of you,” McGonagall snorted angrily “out of both of you,” she glared at me (what’d I do?), “twenty points from Gryffindor, each, for some serious lack of decision making skills!” ouch, I thought using paper towel to dry my face “and ten points to Gryffindor for sheer, dumb luck,” she was looking at Ron and Harry.  
“Apiece?” Ron asked hopefully   
McGonagall scowled at him “don’t push your luck, Mr. Weasley, now, come along, I’m taking you to the hospital wing.”  
……..  
The Madam de Painless was not pleased to see me or Harry, at all. Her hair might have gone a little whiter had Neville been with us. All I’ll say is that Harry is clumsy and he flies on a broom for sport. The woman almost flipped her lid when she hear the words ‘students’ and ‘troll’ in the same sentence. Ron was very much dead when this was over but Hermione stopped my plotting with just a look from across the aisle, sitting on her own bed, and mouthed ‘friends’ and pointed to Ron.   
I sat on the bed with my arms folded across my chest angrily. She didn’t buckle under my glare, ‘fine’ I mouthed back and she brightened. The day’s events and last night’s lack of sleep caught up with me and I feel asleep while waiting my turn for a scanning spelling. There were no dreams.   
When I woke, I could feel someone watching me; it was creepy and for a moment I wondered if it was Jubilee again (she’d did it from time to time, very annoying, just to make sure I was breathing). Slowly the last few days’ worth of events migrated to the conscious part of my brain. Exploding ghost, guilty conscious, new nickname, bathroom concert, lost and dazed troll, best friend lied to stern Scottish woman and lastly Ron taken off the hit list. Yep, that about summed it up.   
“You know, watching someone sleep is creepy.” I told whomever was sitting next to my bed   
There was a familiar chuckle “no different than when I’d watch you sleeping in your crib,” McGonagall chuckled, we never had established if I got to call her grandmother or what I should call her beyond her titles “you’re just bigger and have more hair.”  
“Meh,” I grunted before shifting so I could see the woman “still…so, why are you here so early?”  
McGonagall leaned forward on her elbows, resting them on her knees “it’s just you and me here, Athena,” her eyes followed me as I sat up, this was serious “I want to know what happened last night and to Professor Binns.”  
“Professor Binns?” I asked blinking at her, thank you Fraser, you lying cow for teaching me how to lie “I don’t understand.”  
The witch let out a long breath “you have his tells, you know,” she kept her voice even “Blake does certain things when he lies, he blinks too much,” damn…“you won’t get into trouble, Athena, just tell me.”   
I sorted, caught, “you’re not going to like it, whatsoever. You’re better off not knowing,” I said leaning back against the metal headboard “plausible deniability.”  
“We can’t find him,” McGonagall wringed her hands in frustration “he’s just gone! We can’t find him anywhere in the school and someone performed very powerful and dangerous ritualistic magic inside the school but we can’t find where,” her green eyes were scary at this point, trying to see into my head “was that you?”   
I didn’t know how to answer that “I...well, its….well…I’m not sure…damn,” I just shook my head “I can honestly say that you don’t have worry about me doing anything like that in the future. There are certain things that shouldn’t be used even for the best of intentions. I may have to remind someone else of that,” I said thinking of the woman who gave me the book in the first place “and as for last night, Ron bought himself a clean slate by saving Hermione despite the fact that she was only in that bathroom because of him in the first place.”  
“And why weren’t you in class?” was the next question, I had expected follow up to what I had said and tougher interrogation methods.   
“Guilty conscious and Seamus’s deplorable ability to control his magic,” I deadpanned then added “I’m sorry for the trouble the last few days have been. I seriously struggle with age-appropriate decision making, with remember what my age really is. I’ve said it before.”  
McGonagall nodded “the next time you’ve a problem, I don’t care what it is, you will come to me with it,” she said firmly “I’m here for you now. I am sorry for everything that happened with Blake but you are alive and well, and that I won’t apologize for.”   
“I’ll try,” I looked away from her “but with the troll, I did even know it was in the school…” I chuckled then “what’s Dumbledore going to do about Binns?”  
Heavy sigh, not a happy one “there’s not much he can do except find someone to fill the post. Keeping a ghost as a teacher wasn’t very helpful, Cuthbert didn’t keep a syllabus nor lesson plans; mainly because he was incorporeal and couldn’t hold a quill. Our investigation into the ritualistic magic turned up nothing than Quirrel misplaced his stock of incense.”  
“I’m sure a lot of people are grateful,” I smirked and felt sick inside, that’s what we forgot…the damn incense, we didn’t cleanse the room first “no more headaches.”  
“Professor Trelawney claims to have misplaced a piece of jewelry only to find it again, and that her inner eye watched Cuthbert move beyond the veil.” McGonagall glowered at the professor’s name “but she’s…” she caught herself before she said anything bad “just certain he’s not here anymore.”  
I sagged in the bed “guess that’s good then, he found his afterlife.”  
“Maybe…” was all she said in return and then raised a dark eyebrow when my stomach growled loudly “did you eat at all yesterday?”   
I shook my head but before she could do anything, Jubilee appeared with a tray filled with all different food. Most of it looked like it’d been leftovers from the previous night’s feast. McGonagall left then, to let me eat and get dressed. I had an exemption from the morning’s potion class but not from Charms.


	9. Fortune Cookie Say: if the cake no good, what’s the point of the frosting?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> behold! chapter I

Chapter Nine: Fortune Cookie Say: if the cake no good, what’s the point of the frosting?

Two days after the Halloween feast brought a surprise that was awesome for two reasons. First was the fact that Dumbledore didn’t look happy about announcing a new teacher and one that the school board had found for him. So far, I haven’t really seen what makes the old man so damn special. The second reason it was so awesome was because the new History professor was Kaylee Parmenter.   
It was Hermione who held me in place on the bench that morning when Dumbledore announced the staff change. I had wanted to run to her and hug the woman; maybe only once before had I been so happy to see her. She was a little different from the last time I’d seen her as her once long and unruly mousy brown hair had been cut and she was wearing witches robes. Normally she preferred shorts, cotton tee-shirt and hiking boots.   
Once breakfast was over there and everyone was heading off towards whatever Saturday plans they had, I was sprinting for the teachers’ table. Kaylee could have cared less about the disapproving looking the headmaster was giving her as she returned my bone crushing hug, kissing the top of my head. For the love of the divines, this was the woman who had raised me basically. When I looked up at her, I could see her blue eyes shimmering.  
“Wanna meet my friends?” I asked the American   
She rolled her eyes “of course,” she put her hands on my shoulders and turned me around and we head to where Hermione, Harry, Neville, Angie, the twins and Ron were still sitting at the Gryffindor table “I still can’t believe you wound up in Gryffindor, not surprised but I would have figured Ravenclaw, perhaps.”  
“I think the hat wanted to dump me in Hufflepuff for being sarcastic and threatening to use it for a bird cage liner when it wouldn’t stop talking,” I admitting “magical items just aren’t impressive anymore when you’ve seen tap dancing shoes and mime’s glove work in unison to drive a stick shift 57’ Chevy.”   
“Why’d you hug the professor?” Ron demanded, he was still miffed that I threatened to knock his teeth in if he ever hurt Hermione again like he had. Totally missed the part where I told him he had a clean slate to start over, he was getting another chance.   
“Because Ronald,” I tried not to roll my eyes “she’s the woman who raised me basically. Everyone this is Kaylee Parmenter. She was previously my tutor from the time I was old enough to hold a coloring pencil,” I grinned “Kaylee, these are my friends,” I went around to each and introduced them leaving the twins for last “and these are the boys you have to watch out for. They mean well and like a good prank but are devilishly wicked. They’ll also answer by each other’s names so just go with it.”  
“Whiskers!” the twins cried in mock protest “no secret giving!”  
I shrugged “she’s family,” I countered “Forge, Gred, she’s family,” I stressed.  
They crossed they’re arms across their chests and gave Kaylee appraising looks while Angie just laughed and happily chatted with the older woman after she’d sat down at the table. The only person to leave was Ron who got bored of the ‘Black Show’, I had heard what he muttered as he was walking away.   
It was all fun until Kaylee asked “so what are you lot doing for Athena’s birthday? It’s this Tuesday, I want in!”  
I grimaced before my forehead thunked down on the wooden table loudly; I could feel the glares of my friends burning into my shoulders and the back of my head. Hermione broke the silent disapproval “is it really? She never said, in fact she told me she didn’t know when it was.”   
Kaylee snorted “oh, she knows. Maybe not the day of the week, but she knows the date. She can be such a brat about it.”  
“You’re a traitor, Kaylee!” my shout was muffled. The woman just patted me on my shoulder and laughed.   
An hour before noon Harry, Angie and the twins had to leave for Quidditch practice. I was a bit jealous because I wanted to ride a broom, made me wonder of Gryffindor had a practice/scrimmage team. Hermione had just waved to the four players and giddily continued to plan for my birthday day, she wanted payback.   
………………………………………………………………………………………..

I had plans for the fifth, I thought maybe I could avoid whatever it was that Hermione was planning. However, I knew that I would just have to suffer because there was no way I was getting out of it. I had planned to get up early, hit the kitchens and spend the day exploring the castle with Tiberius.   
Wasn’t exactly surprised when I woke to find Hermione already dressed and sitting with Tiberius on her bed. The shadow cat, who’d yet to display any of his supposed ‘powers’ was purring loudly. I’m beginning to think he’s just a regular cat with strange markings (I should really the book on him). Hermione looked triumphant as she ‘accompanied’ down to the common room once I was dressed (more like she escorted me so I couldn’t get away) where the boys were waiting.   
For some strange reason, Harry and Hermione were becoming great friends with Ron. It was hard for me to understand and except this, seems like Ron becoming the hero on Troll Night changed things for him. As Hermione and I were coming down the stairs to the common room, I seen Harry with his head close to Ron’s whispering about something. Whatever it was had Neville frowning deeply.   
That ended when Neville elbowed Harry and away we went to the Great Hall. There was this seed of worry that had taken root in the pit of my stomach that my friends weren’t telling me something. This fear was placed on the back burner when Angie, Katie and the Weasley twins ambushed me just inside the Great Hall with hugs and song. Well…the twins were singing ‘Happy Birthday’ but it sounded a bit like a funeral dirge.   
We were halfway through breakfast, lots of fruit, bacon, hash browns and eggs in a basket; the eggs were little omelets that had mushrooms and onions, when owls arrived. A letter from Aunt Andy had said that all my presents from them would be arriving later, Jubilee would bring them…so that meant that the owl that dropped a largish box in front of me had to be from Aunt Cissy. She liked to show off…a lot.   
When opened, the box shot confetti into the air before transforming into little paper lions when they landed on any surface. They roared and sang in squeaky voices a more cheerful version of ‘Happy Birthday’ than the twins had. Okay, maybe this birthday thing wasn’t so bad, I thought gleefully digging into the box but a living paper card popped out first. Looked like one of those heralds that announce people at balls or royal court…but as a card with arms and legs.   
“Hear ye! Hear ye!” the card shouted in obnoxious and over dramatic voice that made the card shiver “today is Athena’s birthday! The Heir to the Most Ancient and Noble House of Black! Wish her well! Hear ye! Hear ye!” with that the card fell flat, now just a card.   
Harry broke the daze the card had created when he learned over asked in a loud whisper “I think it’s safe to say that we all know you’re the heir to your house.” he smirked   
That made me laugh as I picked the spent card up and read the note that Aunt Cissy had put inside. She wished me a happy birthday and that someone else had won the honor of giving me my watch; she also mentioned that what was in the box hopefully made up for all the birthdays missed while I was growing up. Great Divines, there’s a lot of adults who feel guilty about that.   
Inside the box was books (most were on basically heir business-related-stuff), a lot candies and biscuits (my own box of rare Chocolate Frogs), more socks and three different colored stocking caps, little animated animal trinkets (made life like noises and had their own zoo-like terrarium) and a little wireless radio. The most astonishing was the broom and maintenance kit that Harry helped me pull out of the box that Neville held for us. It was a Nimbus 2000 like Harry’s but stained silver and gold with the name of the broom in bronze lettering.   
“Little lion,” Angie giggle poking my side “you’re drooling.”   
“But it’s so pretty,” I answered on auto-pilot “we should go flying, play a game of pick up Quidditch.”   
Angie wrapped her arm around my shoulders and shook her head “maybe after dinner,” she glanced at the professors’ table “if you still have it then.”  
“That’s a nice broom, Miss Black,” Oliver Wood was drawn to it like Harry, Ron and the other Quidditch players had “one of the Nimbus’s like Harry’s.”  
“Dude,” I looked at Oliver with a big grin you should put together a scrimmage time to help with pra…” the rest was muffled when Angie put her hand over my mouth   
She took the broom from me and motioned for Harry to take it “we really should get your things back to your dorm room so you can get to class, little lion.”  
Katie took the hint, saw the mad glint in Wood’s eyes, and started repacking the box. Alicia Spinet grabbed my bag and the two chasers followed Angie out the room, her hand stood over my mouth and her arm over her shoulder.   
“Don’t ever give Wood ideas, little lion,” Angie hissed in my ear “the boy is deranged. He’d sleep on the pitch if they let him,” she finally moved her hand from my mouth “I’m telling you, he eats, breathes and lives Quidditch.”  
“But zoom, zoom!” I frowned moving my hand in a flying motion  
Katie laughed as she slipped her arm around my waist, she was a second year “you want fun going zoom, love,” she told me “not watch fun be murdered by a fanatic.”  
………………………………………………………………………………………………

My new broom found a home in my trunk, where Angie said it needed to stay because Aunt Cissy should have known that First Years aren’t allowed their own brooms. Harry is the exception because he’s on the Quidditch team. I shared some of the candy and biscuits with the three older girls, a thank you for helping me back to the dorms, before we had to head off to class.   
I got birthday wishes all day, Quirrell stuttered it. Maybe I should get him a book on sign language; however the last time I thought about helping out a teacher, didn’t end so well. It was a good thing that the twins and Angie had those talks with the boys; they’d been just as bad off as I had been but they were getting better. I think we all still had nightmares about it.   
Professor Sprout gave me a hug and birthday wish after the lesson was over. She smelled like the soft soils of the greenhouse and a bit like fertilizer but the woman was a natural hugger. It was comforting and not overbearing nor uncomfortable. In fact, it was loving and motherly, maybe she had her own family (I’d have to ask McGonagall)? What else would you expect from the Head of Hufflepuff?   
Lunch was awesome, there was cake again for everybody. Maybe Hogwarts should just have a random Cake Day, celebrate everybody’s birthday that month or something. I never knew having friends could be such a blast. Hermione and I kept stealing each other’s plate of cake and trying to eat it before the other got it back.   
There was still frosting on my face when I walked into History, even after going to the bathroom to wash it off. Kaylee, this was her second day, just shook her head and with a flick of her wand cleaned it away. It was a little embarrassing but such a motherly act that I didn’t care my cheeks had turned red.   
Kaylee was the bomb. She was still working on straightening out the cluster-mess that Binns had left behind but she could tell a story, that’s for sure. Everyone stayed away, having quickly realized that sleeping equals getting woken in some very-not-pleasant fashion. They all started taking notes too because this was no longer a loosely disciplined class. The tests were no joke and Kaylee was not afraid to take points nor give detentions.   
Once the lesson was over, and before she’d let me leave, Kaylee gave me a hug. She told me that her present for me would be the others gifts for after dinner. I was really happy walking into Transfigurations, my arms linked with Hermione’s and Neville’s, and my mood seemed to be infectious. The normally stoic professor was smiling throughout the lesson and gave more points than she normally would for even the littlest bits of progress.   
Like Sprout and Kaylee, McGonagall kept me back after the lesson was over. It was strange and nice at the same time to receive a hug from the woman, she smelled like heather and ginger newts. Plus she was my grandmother and I was reveling in the loving feeling at the moment. My giggle as I squeezed the older woman in a bear hug made the older woman laugh.   
“You’re my grandma,” I sighed happily “warm, fuzzy feelings.”   
McGonagall chuckled “you must be having a good day…what is that Angelina Johnson calls you? Little lion, is it?” I nodded, my cheek rubbing against her green robes of her upper abdomen, she was like six feet tall or so “I like that, I may have to adopt it as well. My little lion.”   
“Hermione and I had a cake war at lunch,” I told her, leaning back and looking up my grandmother (felt weird to think that) “that was fun. She got it in her hair.”  
McGonagall smiled “I saw that, any more rambunctious and it would have been a food fight,” she raised a dark eyebrow at me “did Miss Granger get upset about the frosting in her hair?”   
I nodded and shrugged “meh…she won so it was worth it.”  
McGonagall nodded before looking to the clock on the wall “I have another lesson, little lion, but I just wanted to wish you a happy birthday. My gift for you will be with the ones that Jubilee collected.”  
“Got time on Saturday for one of our chats?” I asked stepping back and adjusting my messenger bag “I’ll bring the box that Aunt Cissy sent and we can looked through it properly. Do you like Chocolate Frogs?”   
………………………………………………………………………………………………

I found my friends, expect for the older kids because they didn’t have the big break we had on Tuesday evenings, waiting in the common room of Gryffindor tower. He had already retrieved his broom challenged me to a flying contest the second I came through the door…challenge accepted. I could see Hermione wanted to protest but she just made sure that we were warming warm clothes, scarves, caps and gloves before we headed out.   
That was a lot of fun, flying around the Quidditch pitch playing follow the leader. Then my three favorite chasers and two beaters showed. My quaffle handling as a bit clumsy as I’d never handled one before (got a little better as we played catch) but what I excelled at was giving Harry a run for his money chasing the snitch.  
It was all fun and games until Hooch blew her whistle from the floor of the pitch. I glanced around, curious of they knew what was going. They looked confused and I followed them and Harry down to where Hooch was standing next to a straight faced McGonagall. Hermione and Neville had already started our way, probably when the whistle was blown. Funny, I thought Ron had been with us.  
Hooch frowned “it has come to our attention, Miss Black, that you received a personal broom today. Is this true?”  
“Ughhh…” my brain was racing trying to think but all it came up with was “no.”  
Hooch raised an eyebrow and her eyes narrowed “then what’s that you’re holding?”   
“A figment of your imagination,” I said quickly “and may I commend you, Madam Hooch, on such a lovely, powerful and detailed imagination.”   
“Slick kid,” Hooch snorted “but you were informed in your Hogwarts letter that First Years are not permitted to have your own personal brooms.”  
“It’s Angie’s,” I said quickly thrusting the broom at the girl “she’s letting me borrow it, it’s my birthday today and I wanted to go zoom, zoom,” I made the hand motion I’d made earlier “see,” I did it again “zoom.”   
McGonagall frowned, looking like she really didn’t want to do this but “I’m sorry, Miss Black,” damn, she used my last name, my whole body deflated “but…”  
I threw the broom to the feet of the two women “what the fuck ever,” I snapped, all happy feelings gone. Anger and…well, mostly anger took its place “do whatever, I don’t care…break it, burn it, and do whatever you want.”  
Hooch look scandalized, everyone else was too stunned to react “MISS BLACK, fifty points from Gryffindor for un-sportsmen like conduct!”   
“Do I look like I play Quidditch?” I asked, my temper had never been easy to control when not facing Fraser “obviously not, first off I don’t have a broom now for fuck’s sake. How then can I be a sportsmen? Your chastisement is, therefore, invalid, thank you very much!”   
I started to walk away then but Hooch started again “get back here Black, I’m not done with you!”   
“Just toss about a few angry words, couple obscenities and it’ll be like I’m right there!” I cried back at her, walking backwards for a few yards just to yell back “I know, see you in detention!”   
Yea…I was going to pay for that, big time. I was too mad to even being to think about my friends that I was walking away from nor how Hooch and McGonagall knew about my broom. Well, not my broom now. If it were possible I bet there would have been storm clouds brewing over my head as I made my way into the castle.   
That party that was going to happen in the tower after dinner didn’t seem so appealing. In fact, being around people in general didn’t seem appealing. Not even dinner sounded worth it right then. Instead, I just passed by a concerned looking Draco who was flanked by his usual cronies without even a nod of the head or a wave of acknowledgement.   
I found an empty classroom that overlooked the Black Lake, crawled up in the window and watched the sun go down. The light playing with the waves. I’m not sure when, but Tiberius was there with me suddenly, in my lap, purring. He’d been there for a while I think, it was the chill of the room that brought me out of my thoughts. I was getting cold. Fixed that with just a flick of my wand and created a floating ball of enchanted purple light that was very warm.   
“Ah, that was very well done, Athena,” a soft, familiar male voice called, trying not to startle me “not many First Years can create a variation to the Bluebell Flame charm. To make it a different color and to have it radiate heat in all directions. It was a bit chilly in here.”  
I sighed heavily, of course it’d be Dumbledore who fines me in the middle of the night…in an empty classroom…when I didn’t want to be found “Hermione taught it to me, she found the Bluebell Flame in one of her charm books she’d gotten last summer.”   
“Miss Granger is very talented,” Dumbledore nodded as he came to stand beside the window I was sitting in “she’s always very worried about her best friend.”  
“I know,” I admitted “I figured they would be and I’d have some apologizing and groveling to do when I get back to them but I wanted to be alone. My temper is…”  
“Quite like your grandmother’s when she is properly riled up,” he sounded amused “I remember when I was her professor. She had quite the time keeping it under control, enough to make prefect and head girl but she did,” he chuckled “the stories I could tell on her but I won’t, those are for her to tell. Point being is that you are just starting to learn the same lessons she did.”   
“Am I in serious trouble with your flying instructor?” I asked quietly breaking the silence that we’d lapsed into, keeping my eyes out the window  
He shrugged “you have a months’ worth of detention with her and your grandmother. You also lost another fifty points for disrespecting your professors,” his voice was even and calm, no hint of disapproval or criticism “why did you feel the need to do that?”  
“I don’t think you’d understand, Professor Dumbledore,” I said honestly, scratching behind Tiberius’s ears.  
“Try me.” he simply said   
Hate that line “she could have waited to take it from me, say tomorrow. My birthday has never been a big deal, not matter how hard Kaylee tried,” I shrugged “this was the first time that someone of my blood family gave me something on my birthday. That broom meant more than just some toy to be played with.”   
“I see,” he nodded he clasped his hands behind his back “understandable. Perhaps the timing could have been better, but you know that we have that rule for a reason, correct? First Years are just learning to fly, not all of you are from families who are solely magical,” he didn’t even give me a chance to respond before he pushed on explaining “it would be havoc and there’d be lots of injuries.”  
“So why do you let second years and above have them?” I asked almost petulantly, couldn’t have stopped myself if I’d tried “only first years have flying lessons and not all second year families are magical.”  
Dumbledore smiled and shrugged “because second years can join the house teams. That is the difference, exemptions for players like Mr. Potter,” he sighed as his looked out over the lake “I do believe that your grandmother has already sent the broom in question to your guardian and a howler to the aunt who gave it to you,” oh, I wish I could be a fly on the wall for when that arrived “and your friends were going to mount a full scale search when you failed to show for dinner and then your party. Your grandmother intervened and I believe she is waiting for us in her quarters.”   
………………………………………………………………………………………

As it turned out, and I was curious about this, McGonagall’s quarters were actually behind a door in her office. Behind the portrait landscape of standing stones, quite impressive ring of stones with a massive monolith in the center, in the setting sun with young women in white dresses dancing about it. On a brass plate underneath read, Craigh na Dun: Inverness. The image and name triggered something in my memory that Fraser had said. A family legend of a time traveling woman.  
Of course I took this in while Dumbledore was continuing his conversation, not really paying attention to me, about muggle candy we’d had on the way from the abandoned classroom and Jubilee had gone to fetch McGonagall from the tower. It was weird to discuss the difference between British candies and American candy. In the end it’s all sugary and probably bad for you.   
The topic of lemon drops ended when the office door swung open and McGonagall rushed in, made it across the room in three steps and practically strangled me in a hug. She’d gotten the drop on me because her hair was down (not in its usual bun) and she was wearing a tartan dressing gown. She didn’t look like Professor McGonagall.   
“Dunna ya ever to that again, lass!” she had knelt down to hold my face in her hands and we were eye level “do ya understand? Dunna ya ever disappear like that! I was so worried about you!”   
Okay, it’s scary when her accent deepens “uhh…sorry, I…I just, well…sorry,” I looked away from her “I didn’t handle that very well.”  
McGonagall smirked despite herself “no, ya didn’t,” and looked over to an amused headmaster and stood “I think I can take it from here, Albus, thank you for finding her.”   
“Quite like the time that Tomas got lost on his way to the dungeons and I found him locked in the astronomy tower,” he chuckled at the memory “boy had the worst sense of direction.”  
“Aye, he did,” McGonagall nodded “thanks again.”  
The headmaster bid us farewell and McGonagall ushered me into her quarters, whispering ‘leomhann beag’ to make the painting slide to the side far enough to reveal a doorway. The quarters were fairly well sized, with a spacious living room and two doors on either side of an elaborate fireplace. There were pictures everywhere, well…where there wasn’t over flowing bookshelves. Mini-painted portraits were splashed across the room on side tables and little stands.   
A late night snack to slay the rumbling in my stomach found McGonagall joining me on her couch. She spoke while I ate, pointing to the different pictures and telling me backstory and character names. The witch reached out to pick one up that was on a side table at her end of the couch, exchanging it for my empty plate.   
“Why do you have a picture of a teenaged Aunt Andy?” I asked confused “and who’s the fella with her because that’s not Uncle Ted.”  
McGonagall chuckled “no, that’s not Ted Tonks. That’s your father,” she put her arm around my shoulders and pulled me closer to her side “and that’s your mum, taken when your father was in his fifth year,” she traced his beaming face with the tip of her finger and smiled at teenaged antics as the two waved and started doing disco moves “he was so handsome.”  
He was and so much taller than Bellatrix but she was short like her middle sister. Young Robert Bruce had a wide jaw and stubble on his cheeks. His silky, pitch black hair was short and feathered back to just brush the tops of his ears. Emerald green eyes shone happily as he twirled the love of his life around in his arms.   
Bellatrix was beautiful, not saying that Aunt Andy wasn’t but this was different. Aunt Andy had lighter hair, slightly, with a longer nose, bit taller cheeks and a slimmer face. Her eyes weren’t the same color of honey brown that Bellatrix’s was. Where Andy was slim and petite, her sister more built more athletic with defined muscles showing where her selves were pushed up.   
“They look happy and like they belong together,” I said meekly “not at all like I thought they would. I can see why Fraser would be jealous of him, of Robert.”  
McGonagall said nothing but just kissed the top of my head “there’s something I want to give you,” she said softly a not only silently but wandlessly summoned a wrapped box about the side of shoe box from a table behind us “there are a lot of things I can still give you even though you aren’t my heir,” she told me “things that belonged your parents. I’ve held this box I trust since I lost your father,” she said exchanging the picture for the box “he started to put this together when Bellatrix told him about you,” she chuckled then “the wrapping is new though.”  
Leaning into her side, I tore the wrapping off and found an actually shoe box. McGonagall took the lid from me and I found letters with my name on them but with the last name McGonagall instead of Black. There was a broach pin of a Scottish thistle clasped in the talons of a raven, hand painted and of dwarvish make; there was a cloak clasp to match.   
There was a Scottish dirk that had the feeling of old magic on it, keeping from rusting and pitting, from breaking and from ever dulling. A small book of Scottish poems graced the box but it was written in Gaelic which I hadn’t the chance to learn. In amongst that was a ring box and box about the size of my fist that read Milton Jorgen’s Fine Watches and Jewels.   
Curious, I picked the box up and opened it. The lid slid easily off and revealed a masterpiece. It was a watch that had at thick leather band that was embroidered with shiny thread, metal threat of gold, bronze, silver and copper in the most stunning design of flowing Celtic knots I’d ever seen in such a small place. The knots continued up around the edge of the watch’s face and down the other band. The face of the watch was cream colored with sapphire blue lettering and glowing silver hands.   
There was magic imbued in the metal thread. Too much to discern any one enchantment but just holding the watch made me feel safe. I wound the little knob on the edge of the watch to the same time that was on the mantle clock and was surprised when the knob retreated back into the watch to protect itself.   
“Robert was quite proud of himself over this,” McGonagall smiled as she took it from me and motioned for me to hold out my wrist “he drew the design, incorporating symbols of protection, cardinal direction; mostly because his brother got lost easily and it was habit,” she smiled reminiscently as she clipped the little buckle to the right size “also so you could sense danger and Bella was the one who powered them when it arrived from Norway.”   
The watch felt nice on my wrist, it wasn’t heavy and it wasn’t too light that I’d forget it was there. I smiled because I could feel my mother’s magic swirling within the enchantments. Looking up at McGonagall I smiled sleepily and lost the fight to yawn. The older witch smiled softly and told me to lay down, my head in her lap after she’d taken my box and set it on the floor.  
In a strong, smooth voice McGonagall started singing a lullaby in Gaelic, actually I think it was Scarborough Fair she was signing. I sleepily recognized the tune. Gently she ran her fingers through my hair with one hand and transfigured my clothes in to pjs with the other. The rise and fall of her voice never faltered and her words never stumbled, not even she drew a blanket over my shoulders that she’d summoned. My grandmother had me to sleep within minutes.


	10. Quidditch is the Name of the Game

Chapter Ten: Quidditch is the Name of the Game 

Much as I expected there was hell to pay when I faced my friends the next morning. Hermione looked so upset that I’m sure she didn’t know whether to hug me or hit me, but as she’s against violence she was left with only one option while Angie took the other option. Not only did I miss my party, enrage Hooch but I now hold the record as the loser of the most house points for the year; though deep down I’m certain that the chaser was worried about me too.   
Harry gave me a hug in sympathy for the loss of my broom and that my birthday was ruined. He understood what it was like not to have a real birthday and only recently experienced what it was like to have someone try and do something special for it. Neville, I could tell, was seething over the whole incident when I gave him a hug. He promised to find out who’d ratted me out because that was the only way Hooch and McGonagall would have known.   
Ron just called me a sore loser and glared at me; in all fairness I called him a three fingered wanker right back. I don’t think him and I were ever going to be friends. He’d cast his die upon the board and was firm in his move. I was something to be despised because of my family name and I was ‘a snake in lion’s clothing’ as he saw it. He was a very angry little boy and hope one day that angry didn’t become self-destructive.   
By the Friday had come round and Gryffindor was playing in their first game of the year that Saturday, I think I had been successful in making all apologizes to the necessary parties. Madame Hooch was by far the scariest. I’d asked McGonagall to help me with that after Transfiguration the day after the whole debacle. Firstly, I didn’t know where Hooch’s office was and I was afraid she’d devour my soul in one gulp if left alone with the hawk-eyed woman.   
As I stuttered through my apology, I felt like I was the one who needed the sign language book I kept thinking about getting Quirrell. Looking at the woman certainly wasn’t helpful…at all. She did take the tin of cookies McGonagall had helped me put together from the thousands of ones I’d gotten for my birthday and still had left over from Aunt Cissy’s overenthusiastic care packages (I think she was suffering from empty nest). Draco and I actually started to meet up before curfew and did exchanges for things; this was done at that hour because he didn’t want anyone to know he actually liked me. That he didn’t hate his blood-traitor of a Gryffindor cousin.   
Anyways…Hooch said bribery didn’t work on her but she did like cookies and I was still such with her for the evening cleaning helping her prep the Quidditch pitch and stands for the coming season. I guess it was some victory that she didn’t bury me under the pitch when detention was over and ignored met me the next day in her flying lesson. Praise the divines for small miracles.  
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“Here,” Hermione held a book out to Harry “I know that you’re nervous about your Quidditch debut so I found this again, I checked it out before our first flying because I wanted to know more about flying and related subjects,” we were sitting at the breakfast table before Potions “maybe it’ll help.”  
“Quidditch Throughout the Ages?” Ron read the title over Harry’s shoulder and frowned at the bushy haired girl “isn’t that cheating, reading like that, I thought you were against cheating, Mione?” I flinched at the bastardization of Hermione’s name.   
“If it helps him, why not?” I asked “not like the boy was raised listening about the games over the wireless or talking about it with family or even going to a match. Oliver is more interested in strategy than teaching Harry the fundamentals.”  
“How could he not know Quidditch?” Ron demanded, as if it was something everyone should know   
I blinked at him and tilted my head “Ronald, do you know anything about football?”  
“Whut?” he blinked at me “sure, I heard Dean talking about it. You have to kick the quaffle through the goal instead of throwing it. Quidditch without the brooms.”  
Harry and Hermione tried to kill their giggles, Neville just watched interestedly “is that the American football or is that proper football?” I asked   
Ron’s brow crinkled “what’s the difference?”  
Dean jumped in there, having heard his name earlier and tuned into the conversation “American football is right different then proper football,” he sounded excited at the prospect of talking about the game “completely different, like apples and oranges different. In proper football, you don’t touch the ball with your hands, everywhere else if fine and it’s not called a quaffle…”  
Ron put up his hands “I got it,” he waved off further explanation “but what does that have to do with Harry and Mione,” that was going to get old quick “using the book?”  
“Who says it cheating?” Hermione asked curiously “because how else would Harry know if he’s breaking the rules or not? I read a little of it, to see if it’d help Harry, and there’s load of rules that could benefit the other team if Harry breaks them, chapter four by the way for rules and penalties.”   
Harry blinked at Hermione, the realization of what she was saying sinking in “so, I could hurt my team if I don’t know the rules? Oh, that’d be bad,” he gulped “Oliver would murder me.”   
“Deader than a doorknob,” George joked as he and his twin passed by on their way out of the Great Hall, Fred added “unless the doorknob was enchanted, then you’d be in luck Harry. You’d come back again as the Boy-Who-Lived-To-Became-An-Enchanted-Doorknob.”  
Ron frowned while Harry chuckled, I could see him picturing it as he sniggered “lay off, would ya! He’s nervous as it is!” Ron yelled   
“I think he’ll be fine,” Neville spoke up as he put his utensils on his finished plate “between Hermione, Athena and myself, we’ll have him ready for tomorrow’s game.”  
“Whut about me?” Ron demanded   
The blonde boy ignored the demand and tapped me on the shoulder jerking his head towards the doors. We had Potions and it said something that Neville was the first to want to head that way, usually he was the last for that. Knowing that he wanted the conversation over, I pushed my plate away and stood before helping Hermione up.   
Harry read the book every chance he got, after Potions because reading it during class was stupid and I think only Ron would have attempted it. Not sure the boy has any self-preservation skills. During lunch Harry had his nose to the book, reading chapter four carefully like he was trying to absorb the ink the words were printed with. Best part was when he reached over and smacked Ron for calling him a bookworm whilst his mouth was full. Why are my friends so violent? P.s. I almost died laughing because Harry didn’t look, just reached out and thwack!  
We’d finally mastered the levitation spell in Charms and Flitwick was starting to lecture on lumos, wand-light spell (that surprisingly Ron knew already). Harry was anxious to get out of class, his leg was bouncing on his desk. I wondered if he managed any notes at all during the lecture.   
I wasn’t sure whose lame-brain idea it was to go outside after Charms, it’s November in the Highlands, its cold but our break found us and Ron sitting in one for the outside courtyards that the First Years had laid claim to. I was sitting next to Hermione’s legs on the ground, she was sitting on the bench listening to the three boys discussing Quidditch; my homework was in my lap and I was half listening.   
“What do we have here?” a familiar drawl sounded from above my head, looking up I found Professor Snape glaring at Harry from behind us   
“Someone’s idea of a cruel joke,” I smirked “I’m wearing gloves to write your essay, sir…gloves! It’s cold out here! The ink is even protesting, look it’s getting all junked up!” Hermione nudged me with her knee to be quiet.  
“Not you Black!” he snapped and glared at Harry “I meant Potter! Having to read a book to learn about our sports, huh? Scared about facing my Slytherins?”  
“Only if they haven’t showered yet,” I muttered lowly and got another knee “what?”  
Snape sneered at me as he snatched Harry’s book away from him “I knew your father and mother, Black…”  
“Graduations, Professor, would you like a biscuit for that accomplishment,” I shrugged at him, turning slightly to face the man, Hermione kneed me again a little harder this time “considering he was about a decade older than you and would have been out of Hogwarts by like two years or so when you would have started. If you want to taunt me about it, Professor, you should really write Blake Fraser so you don’t use the same material, stuff I’ve heard my entire life.”  
Snape didn’t say anything but turned his attention to the book in his hands “library books are not permitted outside,” with that he limped away.  
Wait…limped? I tried to think back to class that morning to remember if he had a limp there. I couldn’t actually remember the bat-like man standing up at all. He just barked orders from his desk and told us not to blow each other up. I wondered what happened to him and why he hadn’t gone to the Matron of Pain.   
I just shrugged, Binns was a good lesson about getting involved with teachers outside of the classroom. No messing and all that. So, I just went back to my essay that was shakily written hoping that one of the other four would call uncle and go inside. I sure wasn’t going to be the first to give in.   
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Hooch was a mad woman, there was no denying that. She had me out on the pitch painting the lines on the grass with a brush…a brush! What prat is ever looking at the ground during a match anyways? All the action is up in the air unless someone crashes. All this was muttered under my breath as I worked and Hooch sat in the stands with hot tea and a chicken salad sandwich, her feet up on the railing shouting not-helpful advice on proper brush technique; her voice had been enhanced with magic to make it louder so I could hear her.  
I was so happy to get let out for the night because I was so close to chucking the brush at the yellow eyed woman’s head. Not that it would have done any damage because of how far away she was. I was covered in paint when I bumped into Harry as he came out of a corridor rather suddenly.   
“What are you doing, Harry?” I asked holding him at arm’s length from whitewashed clothes so he wouldn’t get painted as well   
He frown at the state of me but just shrugged instead “I went to see if Professor Snape would give me the book back.”  
“Take it he said no?” I asked as we kept on towards the tower “I don’t see you have it.”  
Harry hesitated before saying “I couldn’t find him.”   
I frowned as Harry shifted on his feet and picking up his pace. He’d just lied to me but I couldn’t understand why the book or Professor Snape would require him to lie to me. I had two options, push the issue or let him tell me when he was ready to spill. Had to go with the second option because we were soon at the Fat Lady’s portrait.   
Jubilee scowled when I called her to take my clothes, after I’d showered, redressed of course. She even took my now whitened shoes. When I came down from the dorm room I found Hermione, Ron and Harry with their heads together speaking in low tones. They were on the couch in front of the fire with Neville glaring at them from the chair at the end of the couch.   
“What’s shaken bacon?” I asked plopping down beside Hermione. That was one of Kaylee’s favorite phrases.   
Hermione jumped a little “where did you learn that?” she asked confused   
“A very American tutor,” I shrugged “so, what were you lot talking about?”  
“Nothing that’s your business, Black.” Ron sneered, angry with my mere presence.   
Hermione huffed “there’s no need to be rude, Ronald.”  
“She interrupted our conversation, she’s the rude one. No one wants her here!” he huffed back.   
“Wrong,” Neville growled “I want Athena here, I like her.”  
I grinned at the blonde boy “thank you, Neville.”  
“Then you two can go away,” Ron made shooing motions at us with his hands “go on.”  
“Seriously?” I asked looking to Harry and Hermione who did nothing “is that what you two want?” I asked “me gone?” Harry turned red in embarrassment and Hermione shifted nervously “I see how it is. Chose the red-headed blighter over me, bloody hell…here I thought I had actual friends not turncoat acquaintances. Goodnight, Neville.”  
“Athena!” Hermione called apologetically when I got up and walked away   
Tiberius purred as he crawled up on the table next to where I was working. There was still homework to be done. I plugged the headphones I’d gotten from Aunt Andy (she and Cissy had worked together on some of the items like the radio and headphones) into the wireless that Aunt Cissy had given me. I sat there at the table and listened to music while I worked.   
I ignored Hermione when she came in and sat down beside me, reaching out to pet the cat still lying there. When I continued to ignore her, Hermione started to poke me. I didn’t even make a noise of frustration, that’s true self-control right there. The poking got more persistent until she was punching my shoulder.  
“WHAT?!” I demanded loudly, ripping off my headphones and snapped at the brunette. Hermione and the other three girls in the dorm jumped sky high “what do you want Hermione, to apologize? Is that is? I thought it was for me to be gone. I did that, now what else do you want…a kidney?”  
Hermione’s eyes started to water, I’d never yelled or been cross with her before “I’m sorry,” she said meekly “I shouldn’t have let Ron do that.”  
“But ya did it anyways,” I snorted throwing down my quill and leaned back in my chair “guess his feelings mean more than mine. You know, I’d never make you choose like he did. You can be friends with whomever and I’d never make you choose between me and them.”  
“Why can’t you give him a chance?” Hermione asked pleadingly “why can’t you be his friend.”  
“Because I don’t like him and there is nowhere written that says I have to be that stupid twat’s friend,” I snapped “I don’t have to make nice, but I try because of you and Harry. Ya think Ron’s making that same effort? No, he’s not.”  
“Maybe if you got to know him…” Hermione started   
I lost it then “why the bleeding fuck do I need to like him?” I shouted “why do I need to have anything to do with him? He fucking hates me, made that decision before he ever met me, I mean, don’t you remember the train? Remember when he tried to curse me the second he learned my name?” I roared, Hermione had tears tracking down her cheeks now “everything I think about him is because of what he’s already done. I did as you asked, Hermione. I tried to be friends, I didn’t knock his teeth in for what he said to you at Halloween because you asked me not to. He had his second chance and the twat ruined it because he a foul, jealous rotter.”  
I growled when I noticed that Eloise, Lavender and Parvati were staring at me and kept staring as I got up and walked out of the room. Wasn’t sure where to go but Angie was close and I found her in her dorm room. One of her dorm mates had a record playing going, it was like nothing I’d ever heard before.   
I let out a long breath and school myself before asking “what’s that?” I climbed up to sit beside the chaser on her bed, she’d been reading a book.   
“Moby Dick,” she held the book up “it’s about the captain of a whaling ship, muggle book.”  
I blinked at her “strange name, and I knew that about the muggle thing but I meant the racket coming out of that dying walrus over there,” I pointed to the record player “should get good music in here like The Ramones or Whitesnake, Nirvana at least.”  
Angie just chuckled “those are the Weird Sisters, they’re the rage of the wizarding world.”  
“The wizarding world is retarded,” I muttered playing with a string on her blanket “stupid wizards with shite music.”  
Angie raised an eyebrow at me “what’s wrong?”   
I clenched my jaw and shook my head “nothing that a few ex-friendships can’t fix.”  
“Little lion,” Angie sat up “what’s wrong?”  
It took some prodding on Angie’s part but I told her what happened. What Ron had done and that Neville was the only one to stand up to him. Angie just shook her head and put her arm around my shoulders when I told her about the argument I’d just had with Hermione and that I felt they were lying to me about something. It wasn’t anger that I felt, I was hurt and I had no idea what to do about it.   
Angie didn’t say anything, just pulled me in next to her and started reading her book out loud to me in a soft whisper. Loud enough to be heard over the record player but not so everyone could hear us. I was falling asleep two chapters later and Angie sent me back to my own dorm room to sleep. Of course, she made me promise that I’d be up in time to go to the game…or else.   
Hermione was asleep in her own bed when I returned but I noticed that she’d finished my homework for me, I know her handwriting, and she’d put away my radio. Tiberius was laying with Hermione, he gave me a glance and then went back to sleep tucked into Hermione’s side the traitor. I sat there on the edge of my bed and realized that no matter how hurt I was or how much I disliked Ron (which was beginning to be a lot), I didn’t want to lose my best friend. I may not be hers, I was unsure of where we stood, but she was mine. Neville and Harry a close second.   
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I sat beside Neville the next morning at breakfast watching Harry push his food around on his plate. Hermione sat quietly across from me, looking miserable and I felt like the asshole in the whole problem. So far, Ron hadn’t made an appearance which was nice but I knew it wouldn’t last long. Our little bubble of misery was popped when the twins sat down beside me and grinned at Harry.  
“Hullo, Harry,” they said together “you look radiant.”  
Harry smirked “yeah, feel it too.”  
George shrugged “you should eat, Harry, you never know what’s going to happen today. You’re going to need the energy.”   
“Ya know, Harry, it’s been a while since anyone was seriously hurt,” Fred said wickedly “lost on the other hand, whole other question.”  
I shook my head as Harry turned pale “you’re going to do fine, Harry. If not, oh well, there’s always the next game.”  
“But we’re playing Slytherin,” oh, yay, Ron showed up but he was sporting a slightly swollen black eye and glaring at his brothers “Harry’s got to do great, or are you a snake lover, Black?”  
I smirked “I’m just trying to calm my friend down so he doesn’t have a panic attack,” I raised an eyebrow at him “what happened to your face, Ronald? Looks painful, you should see someone about that.”  
“Little Ronikins ran into a cursed door,” Fred sighed dramatically “seen it happen. He’s already been to Pompfrey and she did what she could,” Ron glowered at him.   
I just shook my head “any-who, hey, Harry, you want to get down to the pitch early,” I asked “get a little flying in or something. Settle your nerves?”  
“That sounds like a great idea,” Neville nodded pushing his plate away “did you remember those candies and biscuits you wanted to bring, Whiskers?”  
I raised an eyebrow at an amused Neville “you picked that up too?” he just nodded and pointed the blame at the twins “some peoples’ children,” I shook my head “but yes, I did get it,” I padded my bag “Jubilee also gave me two thermos of hot chocolate,” then I looked to Hermione “you coming with, Hermione?”   
The bookworm brightened and nodded, grabbing her coat, gloves and scarf and followed us out with the twins following. Ron stayed behind to have his breakfast. I locked arms with Hermione as we listened to the twins regal us with past Quidditch feats, acting some of them out on the way down to the pitch.   
“I’m sorry about last night,” I whispered to Hermione “I think I overreacted and I know I shouldn’t have shouted at you.”  
Hermione nodded and wiped at her eyes “I’m sorry too, you are my best friend and I should have stood up to Ron for you but I want to be his friend. Who’s going to be his friends if not us?”  
“Other people,” I shrugged “we have the corner market on being friends with people. They can find their own friends. He insults me every chance he gets, Hermione. Do you really think I go out of my way to make people cross with me?”  
“No,” she shook her head after a moment “but if we don’t show him different how will he ever…”  
I unlinked my arm from hers “fine,” I shook my head “whatever. I’m not making you choose between us, Hermione, but I will not be forced into liking him so drop it.”   
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This was it, the stands were packed. Harry and the twins had flown a few laps to calm Harry down before hitting the locker rooms to get changed. Neville had found us good seats near the railing in the Gryffindor section of the stands. That’s where Hagrid found us just before the game began, he was sporting a little Gryffindor flag. The big man wasn’t teaching staff so he didn’t have to be impartial, I think. Oh, and Ron found us too.   
We watched as the red and green teams marched onto the field, I got Neville and Hagrid to laugh when I mentioned they looked like marching Christmas ornaments. I jumped a little when Madam Hooch’s voice echoed through the stadium that she wanted a clean game  
Then Lee Jordon’s voice boomed through the stadium “welcome Hogwarts to the start of this year’s Quidditch season. Like always, Madam de Flyer,” oh, shite, that kid was braver than I “calls for a clean game, pfft! Yea right, did you not see last…”  
“Mr. Jordon…” McGonagall’s voice echoed warningly, not as loud as Lee’s had been   
“Right, censor the commentary, forgot that part,” Lee was awesome “and there they go folks, our players are in the air. First the snitch is released,” I caught a glimpse of gold before it vanished “annnd the quaffle is up, caught by Johnson and she’s off! Oh! Here come a snake, practically skilled because it’s flying,” you could hear McGonagall’s second warning “right and the quaffle is now with Spinet, nice pass there ladies…oh, now Flint has it, boo…I mean oooh look at that save! Wood’s blocked the shot!”  
I had to laugh, if Grams wanted in impartial commentary she should have gotten a teacher “now Bell has it…oh, she’s got a bludger to the back…not cool! Ah ha! Pucey got one too from the one of the Weasley twins, sorry boys couldn’t see your numbers…another there’s a bludger towards Flint, damn…missed him,”  
“JORDON!” I laughed again, I’m not sure what was more entertaining, the commentary with Grams or the game   
Jordan and McGonagall were arguing over the microphone when Pucey got the quaffle back, shooting towards Wood and dodging two bludgers. The whole match, the whole stadium forgot about the green clad chaser in an instant when there was a flash of gold and both Harry and Higgs (the Slytherin seeker) took off.   
“HEY, THAT’S A FOUL! FOUL!” Jordon cried when Marcus Flint slammed into the side of Harry and blocked him from the snitch that he would have caught otherwise “FOUL, I TELL YOU!”  
“FOUL!” Hooch blew her whistle “PENALTY SHOT!”  
It was just Alicia and the Slytherin keeper. Everyone but the Slytherins and their supports went nuts when Alicia faked out the keeper and scored in a different hoop. In retaliation, one of the green beaters sent a bludger Harry’s way and he barely managed to avoid it and keep on his broom. Harry had righted himself when his broom started bucking and tossing side to side.   
I frowned and then swore when the broom heaved itself like a raging bull and threw Harry off. He struggled to hang on, nearly seventy feet in the air, by one hand. Beside me, Hermione copied my swear word and effectively got my attention as the twins flew to Harry’s rescue.   
“I think Professor Snape is jinxing Harry’s broom,” she gasped and handed me Hagrid’s field glasses that she’d borrowed before pointing to the teachers’ stand “look!”  
I found the potion’s master easily, his pale complexion gave him away. His eyes were wide open and his lips were moving quickly in a chant. I looked away from him and back to Harry, without the glasses, and saw the broom was still bucking. No one cared that Flint had scored five times already wiping the floor with Wood.   
What the bloody hell? Hermione was gone, vanished into the sea of students and I went back to the binoculars. I caught something Hermione had missed, Quirrell was wide eyed as well. Not looking on in horrified concern but his eyes were locked in the same manner that Snape’s were. His lips were moving, minutely but they were moving. Well…until one of the non-Hogwarts spectators freaked out and started screaming that Snape was on fire.   
That broke both men’s’ concentration and Harry was saved. Once he was back on his broom he was off like a rocket sled on rails. Shooting through the air towards the ground after something shiny and golden. I’m not sure how Harry accomplished what happened next but he sort of crashed and caught the snitch with his mouth.  
“I think he’s gonna be sick,” Hagrid frowned as Harry started heaving/choking “look at that!”  
“I think he just threw up the snitch, Fred wins the game!” I smirked when the little golden ball popped out of Harry’s mouth when Fred had landed beside him and slapped him hard on the back.   
Neville was jumping up and down next to Ron just as Hermione returned. She slipped back in beside me and smiled happily when I handed her back the field glasses. I raised an eyebrow at her as Jordon screamed that Gryffindor had won 170 to 60. Hermione looked rather pleased with herself.   
I leaned over and told her over the roar of the crowd “I think I’ve been a bad influence over you, Hermione, attacking a teacher,” I teased “he didn’t go boom, I like it.”  
“Shush you!” Hermione smacked me but was still smiling  
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After Harry had finally made it out of the locker room, we followed Hagrid down to his hut at the edge of the forest. I liked Hagrid’s huts and when we visited him; except for his rock cakes, those were dangerous to a person’s teeth. That’s why I had packed the treats in my bag because Hagrid had mentioned inviting us down after the match the last time we’d spoken to him.   
We were sitting round his living room, Hagrid really liked the Exploding Bonbons and Chocolate Frogs. Harry recounted the match up until the part about his wild broom ride. Then Hermione stepped in and told Harry and Hagrid about Snape’s jinx state. She did, however, fail to mention how she got it to end.   
“Snape’s trying to kill Harry!” Ron cried   
Hagrid shook his head “nonsense, Professor Snape’s a teacher. Don’t believe it.”  
“But he’s really shady, Hagrid,” Harry added, I got a look at Neville behind Harry’s back and shook my head, Neville looked confused but I mouthed ‘later’ as Harry continued “he always glaring at me and taking points from Gryffindor!”  
“That’s mostly my fault,” I spoke up and shrugged “he’s easy to rile up when he goes after Hermione. You think I’m going to let my best friend go through that, keeps the bat’s gaze off of her.”  
Hagrid looked disapprovingly at me whilst Hermione just beamed “you shouldn’t do that, Athena, not like that. It’s admirable but there are better ways.”  
“What about him keeping that three headed dog?” Harry demanded “it bit him! What’s he keeping under the trap door?”   
“What?” Hagrid and I cried at the same time for the very different reasons  
I frowned “what three headed dog?” I asked looking at my three friends. Harry looked embarrassed that he’d let that slip, Neville looked frustrated and glared at Ron, who looked livid and Hermione couldn’t look at me “what’s a Cerberus doing here?” I looked to the grounds keeper “do you know what Harry’s talking about, Hagrid because a Cerberus is a very dangerous animal. They can tear a fully grown cow to shreds in three seconds flat!”  
Hagrid frowned and shook his head “Fluffy ain’t dangerous, least not to anyone who stays out of his room.”  
“He’s in the bloody fucking castle?” I exclaimed, my eyes wide. Hagrid didn’t even blink at my usage of language “what the bleeding hell, Hagrid? This is a school with little children, like the ones in this room! Does Dumbledore know?”   
The big man rolled his eyes “o’ course he knows, he had me put him there to help guard the…errr…” the big man stopped himself “never mind, but Dumbledore knows about Fluffy.”   
“What about Snape?” Ron asked “does he know about Fluffy?”  
Really Ron, I thought, of course he does if he was bit by him; got away lucky too. Hagrid was getting unease as he set aside his large saucer and tea cup that had hot chocolate in it “o’ course, Snape’s helping protect the…err…never you lot mind, what’s going on in the castle is between Nicholas Flamel and Professor Dumbledore…damn, shouldn’t have said that either. Will you lot just stop?!”  
“Who’s Nicholas Flamel?” Hermione asked curious   
I responded instantly before Hagrid could say whatever he’d opened his mouth to “Frenchmen, an alchemist amongst other things, he supposedly died around fourteen something or another,” I shrugged “did a lot of great things for the magical community but his greatest accomplishment was his work on the Philosopher’s Stone. Trinket that’s supposed to turn lead to gold and create a draught of immortality.”  
Everyone gaped at me “how do you know that!” Ron demanded   
“I did grow up with Kaylee Parmenter, our history professor,” I reminded him and the others “we traveled a lot and she gave me essays about regional famous people, magical or not. I learned about Flamel while we were in Paris.”  
“So Fluffy’s guarding the Philosopher’s Stone?” Harry asked slowly looking to a very unease Hagrid, who pretended not to hear the question and started to drink his chocolate again.


	11. Holiday Greetings Pt. One

Chapter Eleven: Holiday Greetings Pt. One

I wasn’t sure how to react to learning about what my friends were keeping from me. I’ve been known to get lost in the castle like many other first years, there should be a map to this place, but what if someone had gotten lost and wound up there. It could happen, other kids know the unlocking spell alohomora with its backwards ‘S’ wand motion. People do read, like Ravenclaws for example.   
It’d be: oh, look a door. I’m a curious child and I wonder what’s in there. Ahh, then chomp, chomp, no more little first year named Kenny.   
At least Neville looked relieved that he no longer had to lie to me and that he was the one who gave me space after the fact. Hermione and Harry had kept apologizing but wouldn’t tell me why they’d kept it from me. I spent the whole of Sunday, that day after, locked up in McGonagall’s office with the professor. She was grading papers and I was camped out on the couch she’d transfigured from the chair that normally sat in front of her desk, reading one of the books I’d gotten for my birthday.   
The silent treatment I had going with the two dark haired Gryffindors worked until Fred and George locked us in a broom closet on the 23rd of November. Fred had lured me there saying he and George had finally found an idea for my prank, when we got there he just shoved me in the room and locked it. Made it so alohomora didn’t even work. I was sitting on a bucket, playing with my purple flame when the door opened again and in came Hermione and Harry.   
“WE’VE ENOUGH of whatever argument you lot have been having,” just from their voices I couldn’t tell them apart “been right depressing it has, seeing little Whiskers moping about. Hermione and Harry the Fantastic in not much better state…”  
“…yea, so this is the Weasley therapy hour,” the other twin cried and smacked the door “fix whatever you’ve going or we’ll make it our mission to see as many pranks on you done as possible before Christmas. Understood?”  
“Why do they do that?” Harry asked as he slid down the wall opposite of me to sit on floor “add some those things to my name?”  
I shrugged and gave up my bucket to Hermione to sit beside Harry “don’t know, because they enjoy it maybe and it’s never anything bad.”  
“I’M SORRY!” Hermione suddenly shouted causing me and Harry to jump “I’m sorry, Athena, that I let Ron talk us…me into not telling you what we found on the third floor corridor. He said you’d turn us into to McGonagall because she was your grandmother.”  
I blinked at her in the purple firelight “so you let him convince you that I was untrustworthy. Me, that you’ve know longer than him,” I frowned, that really hurt “huh…I see that our friendship that started before Hogwarts, before we even got on the train meant what?” I asked “it meant nothing? Hermione, you were the first person my age that I was…am friends with but I’m not sure I’m your best friend. I mean, you’re mine but I’m not yours.”  
Hermione gasped, horrified “how can you say that?”  
I looked to Harry and back to Hermione “how can I be your friend, the both of you, when you believe that I’m untrustworthy…that I’m a tattler and you let someone convince you of this.”  
Harry bowed his head “we just thought that it was safer this way for you, if you didn’t know.”  
“Well, thanks for excluding me for such a good reason. Not like I’m perfectly capable of finding my own trouble,” I rolled my eyes “appreciate it.”  
Hermione came to sit on the other side of me and laid her head on my shoulder “I promise never to lie to you again,” the brunette said meekly, sliding her arm through mine and hugging it “I promise.”   
Harry mimicked this, but he did look uncomfortable about it “me as well, Athena. We strays must stick together.”  
“Ronald doesn’t like me, ya know,” I pointed out to both of them “everything I do just seems to make it worse. I could be the nicest person in the world to him and he’d say I was only pretending because I wanted something,” I shrugged “maybe it is all my fault, I don’t know. Just know that I will never be his friend.”  
Hermione sighed “he says the same thing about you; that you just like seeing him get into trouble. That you’ve turned the twins against him.”  
“He did that on his own,” I smirked “ain’t nobody going to make them do something they don’t want to do, except their mum.”   
Harry chuckled “this is true, but you should add McGonagall and Madam Hooch to that list.”  
“Madam Hooch is scary.” Hermione shivered as Harry and I nodded in agreement   
Sometime later the twins returned with Neville and Jubilee, who was carrying a tray of sandwiches and Neville had a large thermos and some cups. They joined us in the broom closet and we had chicken sandwiches with hot chocolate. Apparently the locking of the closet had been Neville’s idea.   
…………………………………………………………………………………………….

About the start of December, Aunt Andy sent me a few catalogues from several shops in a few UK magical shopping districts. As only third years and above got to go to Hogsmeade it made Christmas shopping for us younger years slightly difficult. With Aunt Andy’s method, I could order stuff by writing down the codes of what I wanted to get and she’d send off the order and made sure they were paid for. She would help me wrap them as well shopping for the Tonks and myself would be done when I came home…she used those words, home. I had a home.   
I showed the catalogues to the others and they were quite taken with the idea. Except they had to do different methods of payment, Hermione wrote her parents, Neville his Gran and Harry used the last of his pocket money that he’d gotten out of the bank at the beginning of the year. Ron was actually decent about it and said that he’d been saving up his allowance for this and asked to borrow one of the magazines. No harm in that, so I lent one to him.   
That seemed to make his day, even if I never did get it back. Gorgo was happy, too, when I finally gave her my letter back to Aunt Andy. I was very careful in writing the order numbers and what catalogue they were from down and how much they would cost, not sure about tax…or if there was any. Anyways…with that done I was free to do other things which was good because that type of shopping made my head hurt.   
It was the Monday, two weeks before term ended that McGonagall gathered us first years together in the common room. She held up a sheet and told us that if we were staying over the holiday then we needed to sign it. The sheet would be by on the bulletin board by her office door in the future.   
“Nah,” Neville shook his head when Harry asked him later if he was staying “me Gran has big plans for this Christmas and there’s the Malfoy’s ball the day after Christmas. She wants to show off her heir,” he huffed at that.  
Harry looked to me next “Aunt Andy wants me to come home,” I grinned “home, I like that but, hey, I could ask her if you could come along, Harry. If you want.”   
The dark headed boy shook his head “I asked McGonagall about that before she left the common room but she said I could only go to my guardians as a first year or with written permission from them and I don’t see that happening.”   
“I’ll be here with you, Harry,” Ron grinned “Mum, Dad and Ginny are off to visit my brother Charlie. His in Romania at the dragon persevere there.”  
I chuckled “at least you’ll have the twins for company, Harry. That should cheer you up.”  
“Oi!” Ron protested “what am I, chopped gizzards?”  
Hermione elbowed me before I could reply “my parents want to visit my grandparents for the holiday. They’re in Cardiff, so we’re taking the train.”  
“What about you, Athena?” Neville asked looking over at me   
I shrugged “I’ve no idea what they’ve got planned, just want me to come home.”   
Neville grinned “maybe you’ll get dragged to your aunt’s ball and I won’t be alone.”  
The blonde boy chuckled when I smacked him “not funny, Neville, not funny at all.”   
My friends teased me about that, Ron just sniggered. I do have to say that Ronald and I were getting along better now after the Nicholas Flamel deal and that McGonagall hadn’t come hunting him about the whole third-floor corridor thing. Myself, I was more than willing to forget about a giant three headed dog and what was assuredly a really stupid idea that included the stone.   
Christmas decorations started going up that next week. Flitwick could be seen floating ornaments into place on the massive tree that Hagrid had gone into the forest for. Even McGonagall was busy collecting signup sheets from all the houses for who was staying, running down students whose names were barely legible just for confirmation. It made me wonder what she was doing for the break.   
She looked a little uncomfortable when I asked “I have Christmas dinner with family at Fraoch tur,” McGonagall finally admitted, we were in her office the day before train was to leave for London. She’d been entering the names staying into a book for Dumbledore “Bridget and her brood come in from Mount Greylock for the holiday.”  
“Oh, right,” I nodded suddenly feeling foolish because I had wanted to invite her to Christmas at the Tonks. I had started to forget there was that void between us and that I wasn’t part her family anymore. That hurt, deep in my chest because I was getting used to idea of her being my grandmother “sounds like fun. I have to go finish packing and make sure that Jubilee didn’t repack it to her satisfaction.”   
The older witch tried to stop me from basically fleeing her office but I was out the door before she could free herself from her desk. I wasn’t a McGonagall and I never would be but by blood. I curled up on my bed and jumped a little when Tiberius seemed to come out of nowhere, purring loudly at me and trying to comfort me. Damn, I am really going to have to read that book about him.   
……………………………………………………………………………………………. 

McGonagall did try to talk to me before those of us heading home left for Hogsmeade’s station. I just wished her a Happy Christmas and continued on after Hermione. I’m sure that my voice wavered and I did see the hurt flash through the older witch’s eyes but I just wanted to avoid to whole conversation. That’d be nice.   
Hermione, Neville and I spent our train ride back in the company of Susan Bones, Megan Jones (Hufflepuff) and Terry Boot, Sue Li (Ravenclaw). That was fun, never really had a chance to talk anyone from another house. Too busy with something or another. As it was, I really liked the four students we’d found ourselves with.   
Susan Bones, much like myself (but without the disownment), was being raised by her Aunt Amelia. The same Amelia that was Madam Bones of the DMLE; their head of department. Nym had described her as a fair and capable head with a hell of a death glare for young Aurors who mess up. From that I’d suspect that Nym had been on the receiving end of a lot of those glares.  
Megan Jones, as it turned out, was the younger cousin of Gwenog Jones; captain of the Holyhead Harpies and the younger sister of Hestia Jones, who was just few years ahead of Nym and already a full-fledged Auror. Hermione frowned when the conversation had turned Quidditch for a bit when Terry Boot had asked if it were possible to get a signed poster of Gwenog because he was a huge fan.   
Terry Boot, now there was a kid with great family history, if you believe the stories. Hesitantly, he admitted that his family was most likely the descendant of Webster Boot, the adopted son of the Ilvermorny founders James Steward and Isolt Sayre. His family owned an apothecary in Liverpool.   
The wildcard of our group was Sue Li. She was the third youngest of the Li family, a very quiet but powerful noble family in and around London. They had fingers into everything, broom making, a stock in Ollivander’s Wand shop, apothecaries around the UK and a very profitable dragon manure export from the preserve in Northern Ireland. Like I said, they were everywhere.   
Between the six of us, we came up with enough pocket money to get a good haul off the cart. Sue insisted that we get the strangest things on the cart. Which turned out to be fun. I saved a few pieces of ice mine, chocolate cauldrons and various flavored jelly slugs for Angie when she finally came around like she said she would as we were boarding the train.   
Hermione groaned loudly when I introduced Angie around and mentioned Megan’s Holyhead Harpies connection. That led to another conversation about Quidditch that ended just before we pulled in to King’s Cross Station. Neville and I just had to laugh at our flying challenged friend; she really disliked Quidditch and only watched it because some of her friends were players.   
Aunt Andy, Nym, Uncle Ted were waiting with the Grangers on the platform when the train arrived. They were bundled up and happily chatting. It would seem that Aunt Andy had found quite the friend in Denise Granger. As women of medicine and as women in general. They were busy professionals but worked to make time to have girl’s night and tea times.   
Did wonders for Mrs. Granger’s understanding of the wizarding world. The two muggles didn’t seem at all uncomfortable with the magical happening around them. Aunt Andy was laughing when I crashed into her once I was off the train and my trunk (with Tiberius’s cage) was dropped unceremoniously nearby.   
“Well, hello,” Aunt Andy hugged me back tightly “happy to be back, are we?”  
I shrugged noncommittally “meh, it’s alright…hey!” I protested when Aunt Andy started poking me in the sides.  
“And you, love?” Mr. Granger asked greeting his daughter “you happy to be back?”  
Hermione smiled up at the man whilst Nym was helping her mum gang up on me “yes, Poppa, I am.”  
The teasing ended when I went limp in Nym’s arms and nearly brought the older girl to the ground with me. Our sobering moment came when Neville came with his grandmother to introduce us. His redden cheeks let me know that it wasn’t his idea. Augusta Longbottom was a tall woman, would have been able to look McGonagall in the eyes, she was boney and quite possible scarier than Madam Hooch, maybe. She was wearing a tall hat over her steel grey hair and eyeing me like she wanted to hit me with that red handbag she was holding.   
“Lady Longbottom,” Aunt Andy recovered herself and bowed her head to the woman “how lovely to see you again.”  
“Yes,” Lady Longbottom nodded politely but her eyes were on me and very assessing “it is lovely,” she tilted her head slightly as I straightened myself out “my grandson as told me a lot about you, Miss Black,” I gulped at that and it made the elderly woman chuckle “says that you’ve vowed yourself as his ally and even help him with his schoolwork. Between you and a Miss Granger, you are the only reason he’s passing potions.”  
I shrugged as Hermione came over to stand beside me “in truth, Snape is scary. Saw a potion once jump back into its vial because he sneered at it. Though, that might have been because Crabbe messed up and added the wrong bits,” I saw the corners of her lips struggle to stay even “Neville is a good friend too. He’s defended me and Hermione when he could have gotten hurt.”  
Augusta raised an eyebrow at me “do you know the debt your family owes mine?”   
“They’re only children,” Aunt Andy went on the defensive “now is not the time nor the place to speak of it. If you wish, this coming summer we can meet officially, Lady Longbottom.”  
Augusta turned to Aunt Andy and smiled “that shan’t be necessary Andromeda. If Miss Black is honest in her vow and brings no harm to my grandson then official measures need not be taken,” she looked back to me “it was a pleasure to meet you, Miss Black. I do hope that you live up to the hype of my grandson.”  
I raised an eyebrow at the woman as she turned and walked away. Neville gave me an apologetic look before quickly following after the woman. Looking over my shoulder at Hermione as she slipped her arm through mine.   
“How is it that you make impressions on people you haven’t even met?” she asked setting her chin on my shoulder   
“I’m talented?” I offered and Hermione scoffed  
……….

We said goodbye to the Grangers just outside the snowy station. They would be leaving Christmas day and be back the day before New Year’s; this meant that Jubilee could still deliver Hermione’s present. Between Uncle Ted and Mr. Granger our school trunks were loaded and Tiberius was in the back seat of the Tonks family car. Our owls had flown home instead of riding the train.   
One last hug and I watched my best friend walk with her parents towards their car. Took about two hours through the traffic, weather and distance to reach the Tonks home. It was a very odd feeling, returning here and calling it home. Tiberius was very happy to return, he nearly took out Uncle Ted as he streaked through the front door and slid on his damp paws across the tiles of the foyer and he started his sprint of the house.   
Uncle Ted was okay, though, he’d shrunken my trunk so the size of a shoebox so he was able to grab onto the doorjamb. I got a glare from the man as I failed to stifle a giggle at the cat’s antics. Then I was laughing as the man had launched himself towards me and started tickling me.   
Aunt Andy came to my rescue and shooed me towards my room with Nym and my trunk (so she could enlarge it no-magic for me). Nym, even though we’d been exchanging letters all term, quizzed me over everything that had happened. She wasn’t too happy when I told her about Fluffy and what we thought it was guarding. Hogwarts was a school not a bank like Gringotts, or even get it out of the country if you wanted it protected.   
She was a little disappointed in Hermione for how the girl had acted. Then she smacked me upside the head for how my interaction with Ronald were going. Nym smacked me harder when I finally told her about Binns. Yea…hadn’t written about that because I didn’t want either Nym or Aunt Andy storming the school. From the look on Nym’s face, Aunt Cissy was in for another howler…if that’s all she got then she’d be lucky.   
“Why didn’t you write about this?” Nym demanded sitting on the end of my bed “do you know what could have happened if your salt line failed?”  
“I’d prefer not to think about it,” I muttered unable to look at the now red-headed girl “I’m never doing that again.”  
Nym growled “you better not!” she cried “and don’t tell mum, she’ll go off the rails about this. She just might murder her sister.”  
That’d be bad, I sighed heavily and changed the subject “so, tell me honestly, what have they done about me being heir? I mean with Sirius in Azkaban there’s not much I can do to bring the family back until I’m of majority.”  
Nym shook her head “you’re twelve, don’t worry about it. Though, I know that mum and Aunt Cissy have been to Azkaban, just before Halloween.”  
I was shocked “this family has to get better at communication,” I shook my head “how’d that happen?”  
Nym shrugged “they partitioned Madam Bones for visitation rights and after a long hassle they got the rights to visit.”  
“What happened, though?” I wanted to know   
The older girl, whose hair had gone back to bubblegum pink, shook her head at me “that’s not for me to say, mum and the sneaky aunt want to tell you. Don’t worry, so…” she grinned “you and me are going to spend the morning shopping. We can go to Diagon Alley or…I can take us to either Glasgow, Inverness or Dublin, or…if you ask nicely we can hop a portkey to Paris.”   
I hummed at this because these opened so many options. Never been to Glasgow or Dublin before. Paris was fun and definitely had a freer society for magical creatures, lots of business owners. Veela’s have a lot of shops Paris’s magical shopping district, Fraser always said they had an unfair advantage with that lure of theirs. Not sure what that was but they did do a lot of business with wands, charms and enchantments.   
Inverness was home to a lot of suspicious Highlanders and had the highest number of Oblivators working for the ministry. Their district was old and most of their shops were named in Gaelic, thank goodness for pictures. Always felt like someone was watching whenever Fraser took me there so that was a no go.  
“How about Dublin?” I asked looking up from my duvet “a portkey doesn’t sound like fun with shopping bags.”  
Nym smirked “I can always shrink the bags, kid, I can do magic.”  
I shrugged “point taken but I’ve never been to Dublin before.”  
The older girl nodded as she got up off my bed “Molly Street it is.”   
……….

For the record….still don’t like magical transportation. Aunt Andy had woken me early the next morning for breakfast, Nym just nodded at me from her spot at the table. I hoped she’d be more awake when it came time to apperate. Aunt Andy gave her a lot of coffee. When it was time to go Nym wrapped her arms around me and left with me in mid-sentence to Uncle Ted about wrapping paper; he was asking what design I wanted. Nym thought that was just hilarious until I threatened to be sick on her shoes.   
Molly Street was in the heart of Dublin’s shopping district, go figure. The entrance to the street was marked by a small statue of the fishmonger girl. While muggles believe that Molly Malone was just a girl in a song, to wizards and witches, she was real. Molly Street hadn’t always been named such but the girl had made an impact and…well, she was haunting the street still trying to sell her fishy wares.   
It was a lot of fun to spend time with Nym, I’d almost forgotten. She seriously was like the older sister I’d never had, Angie came in a close second. Nym liked to make me laugh so she kept changing her face as we were walking down the street, tripping several times and that only made me laugh harder.   
We visited all the shops that we could before it was time to go back to London. Nym shrunk the shopping bags and apperated us back and thankfully she gave me a warning this time; no threat of upchuck on her shoes. We had lunch with there at the house, Aunt Andy had ordered take out from the Chinese place down the road and we got Jubilee to join us. Nearly had the elf in hysterics over the invite to the table, surprisingly she fell in love with dumplings.   
Nym promised to wrap what I had gotten for Aunt Andy and Uncle Ted whilst they were taking me out to shop for the older girl. Shopping with them was much more laid back and lacked the same energy that shopping with Nym had…and no body tripped at all. It also took a lot less time so we were able to get back to the house sooner.   
That’s where we found Nym talking with Kaylee in the kitchen. I felt a bit bad as I hugged the preppy woman, I had meant to invite her but after that conversation with McGonagall I forgot. However, it seemed that Aunt Andy had asked her over long before I even thought of it; this meant that Kaylee would be sleeping in the extra guest room…aka Nym’s old room that she was moved out of. Nym would be camping with me for the holiday.   
Aunt Andy and Kaylee were in the middle of making dinner, so they could properly talk, when the fire roared to life. I was wondering when Aunt Cissy would make an appearance. She gave me a hug despite my glare at her and silently pulled me into the kitchen. The woman was too happy and excited, something was up.  
“Why are you upset at me?” Aunt Cissy pouted as she sat me down at the table “was it because of that broom?”   
“Partially!” I growled and leaned closer “why did you send me that book?” I demanded “what were you thinking giving me that damn thing! Binns literally exploded! It was traumatizing.”  
Cissy just shrugged “I just gave you the book, dear, you didn’t have to use it for anything beyond a door stop. I do thank you for having Draco return it.”   
I huffed and folded my arms across my chest, Aunt Andy looked over the counter where she was working “what did you do this time, Cissy?”  
Aunt Cissy’s eyes widened “I did nothing,” she had an innocent look on her face.  
“Pfft,” I shook my head “all guilty people say that. Why did you send me a broom? You know first years aren’t allowed them! I would have like to have seen your face when McGonagall’s howler arrived.”  
It was Aunt Cissy’s turn to glare, but she did see my cover up “that was rude of her, arrived before coffee. That old hag has a set of lungs,” she muttered “didn’t know howlers could yell that loud.”   
I huffed “thanks for the broom but shitty timing on the delivery.”  
“Oi!” Aunt Andy protested pointing her wooden mixing spoon at me “watch your language, Athena, or I will wash your mouth out with soap. McGonagall already wrote me about your mouth so watch it!”   
“McGonagall’s a tattletale,” I muttered and Aunt Cissy just sniggered, glaring again at her I asked “whatcha doing here Aunt Cissy? Just come to wreak havoc?”   
She snorted “no, my temperamental little niece. I’ve come to tell you that you are going to be my guest at my Christmas Ball. The Blacks are making their come back now that Sirius has signed papers that reinstates Andromeda and Nymphadora...”   
From the living room was heard “DON’T CALL ME THAT!”  
Aunt Cissy ignored the protest “as part of the Black Family. He also made Andy his proxy, this allows Andy to take up the Black’s seat at Wizengamot and allows her to make financial decisions at Gringotts, with my help of course.”   
“Oh, so that’s what you lot did out at the Big Rock of Gloom and Doom,” I nodded in understanding, Aunt Cissy glared towards the living room where Nym was watching the telly “wait! What do ya mean I’m your guest? I don’t want to go to a ball, balls are for kicking or throwing, not going to.”  
Kaylee chuckled at this and called “give it up, pumpkin, you’re never going to win this one.”   
“You’re not helping!” I called back to her  
……….  
Aunt Cissy stayed for dinner and grumbled about having to help me set the table. Her older sister just smirked that Cissy had to work for her meal. They, Aunt Andy and Aunt Cissy, told me more about their meeting with Sirius. He was truly surprised to learn that the house of Black had an heir, meaning: he’d either forgotten or he thought I was dead or he could have cared less because I was Bella’s spawn. I’m not taking bets on any one of those.   
There was a part of me that desperately wanted to ask if they’d visited my mum whilst they were there. Maybe it was the festive season or the hurt from McGonagall that made me want to know more about her, about the woman who’d been my incubator for nine months and gave birth to me on Gunpowder Day.   
The only bright point of the whole conversation was when Aunt Cissy pointed out that because Aunt Andy was Sirius’s proxy, she had to go with me to the Malfoy Ball. That didn’t make Aunt Andy look very happy but made Aunt Cissy laugh at her sister’s mutterings.   
Before Aunt Cissy left, she and Aunt Andy presented me with a present wrapped in black paper…original…with a silver bow. The box wasn’t very big, about the same size as a watch box. With the sisters watching intently I tore the wrapping off and found a little Christmas ornament. It an animated knight, in steel plated armor and a long purple feather for his helm’s plume. He kept twitching and brandishing his long Claymore sword, but he couldn’t move his feet because they were glued to a little wooden base.   
“This is a Black Christmas tradition,” Aunt Andy explained “every Black child receives one the year they got to Hogwarts or to whatever magical school they’ve been expected to. It represents their wands, their connection to their magic.”  
“Mine is a sphinx,” Nym said proudly “because my wand holds the core of a sphinx’s tail hair.”  
Aunt Cissy smiled “Draco’s is a unicorn stallion. He got his this morning over breakfast.”  
The little knight bow his head to me and saluted me with his war sword. The pommel of the thing came up to his collar bone. Aunt Cissy stayed long enough to watch me hang the ornament on the tree near Nym’s preening sphinx. She left after giving me a hug and a pointed look to her sister.   
We spent the rest of the night watching old Christmas movies. I was squished between Nym and Kaylee, being fed popcorn and green apple-chocolate frogs with apple cider to wash it down. It was Uncle Ted who carried me to bed, I was dimly aware of this as he was picking me up and carrying me up the stairs. I’d fallen asleep during ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’.


	12. Holiday Greeting Pt. Two

Chapter Twelve: Holiday Greeting Pt. Two

Christmas morning dawned cold. It had stormed during the night and left several feet of snow on the ground. I could have cared less though because Nym is a very warm snuggle buddy. Nym gave off a lot of body heat, maybe it was because she could change appearances at will but whatever caused it I took advantage. I was cuddled as close to her as possible to soak in the warmth. Nym apparently found this amusing.   
I woke to hear the words “…like a kola, I’m telling you, Mum,” I could feel Nym chuckling, it reverberated throughout her chest “tried getting out of bed earlier but she’s got a death grip.”  
“Warm, squishy things don’t talk,” I growled trying to hide my face in her shoulder “bad warm, squishy thing.”  
I heard Aunt Andy sigh but I ignored it, even when Kaylee’s voice entered the conversation “…no, pointing out presents won’t work. When Athena finds a warm spot she’s not leaving without force. Here…”  
“No,” I protested as strong hands pulled me away from the warm cocoon “warm squishy!”  
“Thank you!” Nym cried and made a dash from the room as Kaylee sat me up   
I rubbed at my eyes “I was sleeping, you know. How rude!”  
Kaylee snorted “it’s Christmas, sweetie,” she kissed my forehead “time to get up. Breakfast is waiting and you can’t open presents until you’ve eaten.”  
“Like always,” I muttered and slid off the bed. I wore sleeping pants and a long sleeve shirt I’d stolen from Nym. Before leaving the room, Kaylee watching, I shrugged on a sweater that I’d snagged from Aunt Andy. It was a university sweater that was older but still warm and smelled like Aunt Andy. Huh…I’d nicked a lot of things in the short time I’d been home “ready.”  
Holding my hand, Kaylee lead me downstairs because I was still bleary eyed and half asleep. I think Aunt Andy made a protest about the sweater I was wearing, something about how she’d nicked it from her husband and she’d been looking for it because it was warm. My reply was “I know”.   
Breakfast was an uncooperative thing, the hash browns kept trying to run away. There was much laughing when I growled at the fried potatoes and told them to stop moving. They didn’t listen so fingers were required because the fork wasn’t cutting it or catching it for that matter.   
A little more awake now, I followed everyone into the living room where the once lonely tree was now giving shelter to a plethora of brightly wrapped gifts. It seems that Jubilee had been here and gone and come back several times, everything delivered to where it should be. Tiberius came to curl up by my side as Uncle Ted started distributing the presents that were under the tree. Even Kaylee had a pile going.   
When it came time to open the gifts, I needed a little prodding from Nym to open the presents. Tradition dictated that the youngest person opened the first present. I yawned before picking one out, it was from Hermione. It was a book, I was starting to wonder if Hermione knew it was possible to give anything else as a gift. It was a thick book named ‘Everyday Charms and Transfiguration Spells for Dueling’ by Robert Bruce McGonagall, huh…I didn’t know that he’d written a book.   
“Oh,” Aunt Andy smiled when I showed her “I’d forgotten that Robbie had done this. I wonder were Hermione found it because it was a lot more popular overseas, especially in Japan.”  
“Looks like she found it in a secondhand shop,” Uncle Ted said looking it over as I handed it to him “a little roughed up but still a very good find. Advanced though,” he looked pointedly at me “I expect you to not try the spells in this until you’ve reached the appropriate skill level in school. Your father would have expected the same thing while your mum was teaching when he wasn’t looking,” he was smirking at that thought.  
Nym prodded me again and pointed to the other presents, I’d started to read Robert’s book. Sighing, I set the book aside and took the present she handed me. It was from Ron, it was a box of Bertie Bott’s Every Flavored Beans. I frowned and made a face of disgust, these were my least favored candy and I’ve ranted on it several times.   
“I thought you hated those,” Nym looked confused “who gave you that?”  
I frowned “Ronald Weasley,” I tossed them to her “happy Christmas, I’m re-gifting.”  
Nym smirked and caught the box “I sure Mad-Eye would just love these.”  
My next present was from Harry. At least the boy had more sense than that twat he called a friend. Harry’s present was an ever-inking fountain pen, the kind of pen that has the quill nub; he gave me three of them. I think he was hinting at something, maybe the fact that I kept getting chewed out by Snap for using muggle pens. They weren’t on the list of approved school supplies, the bat just wanted something to nag about.   
I found Draco’s gift next. Honestly I hadn’t been expecting him to get me one but I had gotten him one; just a cheesy diorama of the Wimbourne Wasps’ stadium with the actual flying replicas of the current team members. Aunt Cissy had mentioned that Draco was a fan of theirs. Draco’s gift was a Harpies jersey, Gwenog Jones. I liked it.   
Next was Neville’s present. His was a stuffed animal of all things. A Pegasus with unfurled wings and caught in mid-gallop. It was roan colored with a white circle on its chest and golden tipped wings. Tiberius was not impressed by the toy horse and batted it away when I showed the horse to him.   
Aunt Andy gave me a heavy blanket that had the Black family crest on the upper right hand corner. The rest of the quilt was like series of stained glass windows with Celtic knots, knights and dragons, Valkyries in mid-flight on winged horses and a witch stirring a cauldron. It was warm and made by hand.   
Uncle Ted gave me a giant lion shaped pillow. It was charmed to purr and to roar but most importantly, it radiated heat. Tiberius didn’t like this and attacked the thing’s head when it roared. Everyone thought that was hilarious expect me because I was trying to lounge on the pillow.   
Nym’s present was something that I could use at Hogwarts. It was a wizard made record player with a plethora of albums to go with it, it was a charm and crystal that powered it. She’d gotten artists that could be heard on popular muggle radio. There was a mixture of punk rock, rock, country and pop music. The whole thing fit in a small trunk…box…thing. I loved it.   
Kaylee had gotten me a jewelry box and a necklace with a golden triquetra pendent. The triquetra was a three pointed Celtic knot. Kaylee had long said that it was a symbol of protection. She grinned when I asked her to clasp the silver chain for me.   
What present I didn’t really like, beyond Ron’s, was Aunt Cissy’s because she’d given me dress robes. There wasn’t pants. The note said that I was to wear them at the ball tomorrow but I refused. Aunt Andy modified them to keep the peace.   
I noticed, but kept it to myself, that McGonagall hadn’t sent a gift or even a well wish. Well, she was back with her ‘real’ grandkids so that was that and I wouldn’t worry about it. I would distance myself from the woman and not impose upon her again. This was a bit drastic, yes, but it hurt so…yea. That’s what I get for thinking that the disownment wouldn’t matter.  
Aunt Cissy worked with Aunt Andy for my sake even though Aunt Andy had been disinherited. This just seemed like a harsh reminder. She could be my link to my father, she could be my professor but that was about it. Or, at least that’s what I decided as I cuddled into my lion wrapped up in my blanket with the candies I got from the twins (I’d also gotten a red hand-made sweater with an ‘A’ in gold that was about a size too big; not sure what that was about) and my three favorite chasers.   
There a movie on the telly that Nym had me watching while she went to set something up in the back garden. I was actually more interested in Robert’s book than I was in what was on the telly, which I was actually reading. I’m sure there’s a ‘bookworm’ comment somewhere in my future.   
“Oi! Bookworm!” Nym called from the doorway where she was leaning against the doorjamb…there was that comment “would you like to play a little one vs one Quidditch?”  
I raised an eyebrow at her “how would that even work?”  
“Well, you’d go get dressed, I have our brooms by the back door and then we take turns as keeper and chaser.” Nym explained   
Nym helped me get my things up to my room before heading off to make sure the quaffle was where she’d left it. I dressed as warmly as I could and Uncle Ted handed me an old pair of goggles before I headed out the back door. Damn, it was cold but the back garden looked amazing. All snowy expect where Nym had trampled it down around three new additions to the garden.   
The three hops weren’t very tall, maybe twelve feet at most. Nym grinned and handed me my golden broom before she took off to hover before the three hops, Uncle Ted waited until I was on the broom to toss me the faded red quaffle. It was fun being coached by Uncle Ted on proper quaffle techniques and how to fake out the keeper. He could have play professionally but it wasn’t in the cards.   
My nose was red as my cheeks by the time Aunt Andy convinced us to come back inside. It was getting late, dark and time for Christmas dinner. That was interesting. Having dinner like that in a family setting that was more than me and Kaylee and Fraser wasn’t yelling about something in another part of the house. It wasn’t lonely, it was family.   
Nym, Kaylee and I were playing a board game in the living room, I’m certain Nym was cheating somehow, before both women had to go. Nym had training in the morning with Mad-Eye Moody, she promised to make sure to take him the jelly beans. Kaylee had school duties in the castle, changing off with professors so they could spend New Year’s somewhere else beside the castle.  
“Bah! I take another one of your little plastic minions,” Nym cried triumphantly as there came a knock on the front door “are you sure you know what you’re doing, little cousin?”  
I stuck my tongue out at her “you’re cheating somehow!” I glared at her “you see it, don’t you Kaylee?”   
Kaylee just raised her hands up “I’m sorry that you are bad at this game, Athena,” she chuckled “maybe you should pick a different game next time.”  
Aunt Andy stopped my retort when she called me into the kitchen. As it happened, I was chased into the kitchen when I ‘accidently’ flipped the board when I stood. Nym had me over her shoulders and was spinning me in circles just inside the kitchen. I was shrieking with laughter when Aunt Andy started chiding her daughter that there was guests.   
“Wow…forget the tilt-a-whirl,” I hid my face in Nym’s bony shoulder “just get a tilt-a-Nym, everything’s spinning.”  
“Are they always like this?” a familiar feminine voice asked   
I looked up to see McGonagall and a younger version of McGonagall with browner hair standing by the table, Aunt Andy smirked “pretty much, makes me wonder how cringe worthy it would have been to raise them together.”  
“Oi!” Nym and I cried at the same time “I resemble that remark!” Nym quipped   
I nodded “she really does, even if she has to change for it.”   
“Hush you!” Nym wobbled me about before seating me down   
Took a second to get my legs under me again and grinned up at Nym before looking to the Professor “hello.”  
McGonagall snorted “do I get a hug, lass?” she asked holding her arms open   
I was shocked, not quite sure what to do before Nym gave me a shove forwards and I found myself in McGonagall’s embrace. She was warm and smelled of her customary ginger newts and heather. I chuckled and muttered about warm and squishy.   
McGonagall was grinning as she let me go and stepped back “lass, I would like to introduce you to your Aunt Bridget, Bridget Holmes.”  
I raised an eyebrow at this “wow, I should have attended Hogwarts sooner, got Aunts popping up everywhere.”  
Aunt Bridget just snorted before she wrapped me up in a hug which was slightly awkward for me, I uncomfortably patted her on the back until she let me go. She’d had to crouch a little to hug me, she was just as tall as her mum. Bridget held me at arm’s length and nodded about something.   
“I am so very pleased to meet you, Athena,” she smiled brightly “leave it up to my big brother to name his daughter after our mother; had to go Greek to do it but...”she shrugged “you’re going to be tall, like us and your dad.”  
I frowned “yay?” I offered happily stepping back when she released me   
“We have something for you.” Bridget must not have noticed my lack of enthusiasm or was ignoring it.  
The elder McGonagall handed me the gift. It was cloth of some kind, inside the red and gold wrapping paper. With the paper gone, I found a hooded cloak; a very nice hooded cloak. It was a formal cut, dark russet red with gold trim but it was the inside lining that caught my eye. Even Andy was surprised to see it because it was a tartan pattern. Black checkered with almost black-grey with lines of green and pale blue separating them.   
“Where did you find that?” Aunt Andy asked softly, running her hands over the pattern “this is a very old tartan that I thought was lost when the Black came south after the Uprising.”  
I raised an eyebrow at that “what uprising, like the Jacobites?”   
Aunt Andy nodded as McGonagall answered “there was a time that the Blacks were true Scots. For about three hundred years, the main branch of the family was near Inverness. Then the Uprising happened, Bonnie Prince Charlie lost at Culloden and those Blacks suffered greatly. Moved back down to London then. This was theirs,” she nodded to the cloak in Aunt Andy’s hands “the tartan. Found the pattern a long time ago but Bellatrix as already in Azkaban by then.”  
“The outside is for Gryffindor,” Bridget explained but honestly, that was obvious “what do you think?”  
“Warm and squishy?” I offered uncertainly   
Nym chuckled at the Scotswomen’s confused looks “that’s high praise, don’t worry.”  
“Oh,” I remembered the book of Robert’s “Grams, this way!”   
I grabbed McGonagall’s hand and pulled her towards the stairs. McGonagall and Bridget followed me up to my room. Eagerly I showed them what I had gotten for Christmas, holding the book out to the last. Both women made sounds of surprise and sat down on my bed while McGonagall reverently flipped through the leaves.   
“I thought these were all gone,” Bridget said softly “the publisher doesn’t even have the manuscript anymore.”  
I shrugged “Hermione wrote that she found it in a second hand shop in Diagon Alley.”  
McGonagall smiled at one of the illustrations “I will have to talk with Miss Granger about where she found this. I bet you anything that the shop owner didn’t realized the treasure he had. Miss Granger got one mighty good deal.”  
“Would you mind if I make a copy of it?” Bridget asked   
I frowned, brow crinkled “how?”  
Bridget smiled and drew a reddish wand and tapped the book her mother was holding while saying “geminio!”   
Both my eyebrows went up “wow,” I gasped lowly as a duplicate of Robert’s book appeared in McGonagall’s other hand “that’s so cool! How long does it last?” I asked gently touching the cool cover “I mean if it was permanent then what would be the point of publishers?”  
Bridget and the elder McGonagall chuckled, Bridget answered as she shrunk her copy and put it in the pocket of her coat “it will last long enough for me to create another manuscript for it. Robert was a big fan of professional dueling, the non-lethality and the creativity of them.”  
I nodded “from what I’ve read so far, he has some interesting combos using transfiguration it create shields or attacking constructs and there’s the charm that creates attack birds for distraction.”  
Bridget chuckled and shook her head before saying softly “you are so smart, Robert and Bella would have been so proud and excited.”  
McGonagall raised an eyebrow “if you understood that then why aren’t you at the top of the class with Miss Granger? Instead you are fifth overall behind Potter, Malfoy and Miss Li of Ravenclaw.”  
I shrugged “why not let them have the pride of being there. Kaylee always says that just because you know something doesn’t mean you have to shout it from the rafters.”  
………………

The house felt emptier when McGonagall and Bridget finally left, followed out by Kaylee and Nym. I sat on the couch with Aunt Andy, reading Robert’s book, not even listening to whatever she was watching on the telly. Truthfully, I didn’t want to go to my room because I didn’t want to be alone and Tiberius kept attacking Forge, the lion (I think the twins will get a kick out of that when I tell them).   
Forge, for however cuddly and warm the lion was, was most certainly not Nym. Maybe it was because he didn’t make me feel as safe as when I was with Nym. Plus he couldn’t change his features to cheer me up. Aunt Andy seemed to notice that I wasn’t a cheerful as I had been and decided on a girl’s day (but with Uncle Ted tagging along). She knew where there’d be a hair dresser open on Boxing Day, we’d have lunch out somewhere and the cinema was always a good choice.   
Getting my hair cut by anyone other than Kaylee was weird. The lady also talked a lot as she took a good two inches off my hair. I was so happy when that was over expect now my neck was cold but my head felt lighter. Lunch was fun, Uncle Ted found place that had the wait staff dressed up a pirates and highway men.   
We had to skip the cinema because lunch was longer than we thought it’d be. As Aunt Andy grudgingly reminded us, the three of us still had a Ball to get ready for. Uncle Ted had made a silly comment about Aunt Andy in dress robes that she informed him that he was going as well. He didn’t find that so silly.   
The robes that Aunt Cissy got, and Andy with Jubilee’s help modified, were black with purple and silver trim. They had been just dresses with outer robes but now it was a feminine cut suit with a purple shirt, silver vest with those colors bleeding into the pants and the black over robes. Might as well be a whole new outfit for what they’d done to it and I whole heartily approved.   
Uncle Ted meet me at the bottom of the stairs where he was leaning against the railing. He was handsome in his navy blue robes with gold trim. His hair had been slicked back and he was freshly shaved. I gave him a high five for being the first out. Now Aunt Andy needed to get down stairs and we could leave. Uncle Ted just smirked like he knew a joke that I didn’t.  
By the time that Aunt Andy finally came down stairs in a dress similar colored to the robes I was wearing, I shucked my shoes and was more than halfway through Robert’s book. Uncle Ted got a chuckle when I gave Aunt Andy a disbelieving look when she chided me for not being ready. I’d been ready for over an hour before I’d lost my shoes.  
I followed the two adults into the back garden after donning my new cloak, to the apperation spot. Uncle Ted did the transport, he’s seemed to be the smoothest. I didn’t feel sick as we appeared outside of some massive gates that had a man in a long silvery coat standing beside where they opened.  
“Name?” he asked as Aunt Andy marched towards the gate   
“Andromeda Tonks escorting Athena Black of the House Black with Edward Tonks accompanying.” Wow…Aunt Andy sounded so formal and commanding, it was weird but in a good way.   
The man bowed his head and the gates opened to the sprawling ground beyond. I raised an eyebrow at the peacocks that roamed the snowy grounds. Wasn’t it too cold for them? I nudge Uncle Ted as we made our way down the path towards the front doors and pointed towards the birds.  
“Won’t they get cold?” I asked worriedly   
He shook his head “Lucius takes very good care of those birds, they’re a symbol of his wealth after all,” he snorted “normally they’re white peacocks but its snowy so,” he then raised an eyebrow at me “I thought you knew all about animals and creatures?”  
“Magical animals, sure,” I shrugged “normal ones, no.”  
He just laughed and slipped his arm around my shoulders. Malfoy Manor was nothing to scoff at. It was huge and lit up with light. The stonework looked like white marble and the huge glass panes were diamond shaped, glinting in the charmed fairy lights. The main part of the building had to be three or four stories, with the two steeple towers there was another three floors.   
The huge doors that were elaborately carved, I didn’t the chance to make out what the scenes were before the doors swung open of their own accord. Yea…that’s not creepy and impersonal at all. There was a stately house elf just inside the door waring a silvery toga thing that may have been intended as a tea towel once. That reminded me that I needed to see if I could get Jubilee into a better uniform thingy, Hermione kept complaining about it.   
The little elf took our cloaks and ushered us towards the ballroom, following the gold and bronze colored charmed fairy lights. I’d once seen a picture of the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles, quite fancy and ornamental; also somewhat practical because the mirrors refracted the light and lit the room up. Seems a past Malfoy had decided to have the same deigns expect that the Malfoy statues kept changing postures while the paintings gossiped amongst themselves and watched the guests with rapt attention.  
Aunt Cissy was standing by the door to the ballroom on the arm of a tall blonde man with dark eyebrows (for some reason this worked for him). They were near a long table that held refreshments to tide guests over until the meal later. Least Aunt Andy said there’d be a dinner later. Cissy caught sight of us and grinned before she had a chance to take in what I was wearing…and the grin went away.   
“What did you do to my masterpiece?” she demanded of her sister, pulling me away from Uncle Ted so she could spin me around “I didn’t want her dressed as a boy!  
“Well she didn’t want to be dressed like some hapless girl,” I snapped back stepping away from Cissy “she chose to be dressed as she is. It was quicker and more comfortable. Besides the only way you can tell the wizards from the witches in those robes you all wear is the beards.”  
Lucius raised an eyebrow, he was clean shaven and wearing a silvery set of robes with emerald trimming “are you sure about that, Miss Black?” he asked haughtily with his arms folded across his chest. Please…after a life with Fraser there were only a handful of people who intimidated me enough either recant or keep my tongue, Lucius Malfoy did not count amongst that group.   
I nodded “yep, or they talk,” I received a smack for that from Aunt Cissy “what?” I asked rubbing the back of my head “he asked, I was only answering.”  
“What if he’d been one of the other lords?” Aunt Cissy demanded   
I drew myself up and looked her straight in the eyes and said “good sir, do you realize that the people who made your robes also make drapes?” Uncle Ted almost hurt himself to stifle his laughter, he was biting his fist “please, Aunt Cissy, I know how not to insult people. Besides I wasn’t insulting him, he whom you haven’t properly introduced…the shame! I was just insulting your choice of wardrobe for me.”  
Lucius looked amused as he drew his wife back from me “yes, proper introductions, I am Lord Lucius Malfoy, you may call me Uncle Lucius.” He bowed at the waist to me.   
“uhh…” I trying to remember exactly it was that Aunt Cissy had said as to how this was done “I am Athena Black, heir to the House of Black; honor be to your hearth and family?”  
“I see wild monkeys can be taught,” Aunt Cissy smirked and glowered when I stuck my tongue out at her “do behave child because tonight is about family image. An image you now uphold.”  
I wanted to give a smart ass answer but Aunt Andy just clamped her hand down over my mouth promised to keep me under control. Satisfied, Aunt Cissy shooed us away so they could continue to greet their arriving guests. The whole ‘party’ turned out to be painfully boring and cringe worthy.   
Especially when random lords and ladies came up to Aunt Andy to ‘test the water’ about the Black family and if we were taking alliances or marriage proposals yet for me; that was a big NO on the marriage. As Sirius was still in Azkaban and Aunt Andy was only a proxy, nothing formal could be committed to by Aunt Andy.   
I was so happy to find Neville and hide with him in the far corner of the ball room with Draco in tow. Draco was hiding from Pansy and her parents who were talking about marriages as well. It was then that Neville and Draco realized that outside of school and expectations each other weren’t that bad; another secret friendship accomplished because if given the chance Draco was more like his mum than his dad.   
While we were hiding, I got to thank Draco and Neville for their presents. Draco loved his and Neville was thankful for what I got him. I’d gone through with the idea of getting him and Ronald a terrarium. Both boys scoffed when I told them what Ron had gotten me, we were talking about holiday candies when Aunt Cissy found us hiding behind the drapes with chocolate frogs that Dobby (one of the Malfoy house elves) had brought us when Draco had asked. It was dinner time and we heirs were required.   
I have never been so happy as to leave a place was I was that night when the ball was over. Dinner was gross, some frilly French dish that I swear moved and blinked at me (I don’t like fish). Neville, Draco and I got in trouble for using the salt and pepper shakers to reenact famous Quidditch moves and making the fish heads talk (by non-magical means).   
Once home, Uncle Ted hoped in the car and went to the fast food place down the way; came back with hamburgers and chips. We sat in the living room, on the floor, still in our fancy get ups and ate off the coffee table while the late night show was playing on the telly. Over the low noise of the box in against the wall, I related my evening to my guardians.   
“I don’t think I upheld our family image very well.” I admitted stacking my chips like a little log cabin   
Aunt Andy smirked “you’re twelve! At your age, Sirius had already set Grimmauld Place on fire twice and let loose a niffler into his parents’ room! Poor ole Kreacher went grey early because of him.”   
I curious then “what’s Grimmauld Place?”   
“I guess it’d be the current seat of our house,” Aunt Andy shrugged “we were going to try and get into it this summer. Merlin only knows what’s crawled it there since Walburga passed on. Kreacher was never good at keeping the place up since ’85.”   
Uncle Ted shook his head “I’m almost afraid of what we’ll find in there, honestly. I shudder to think what’s…grown in there.”


	13. Here there be Dragons…well, dragon eggs…

Chapter Thirteen: Here there be Dragons…well, dragon eggs…

I was bored. I was very, very bored. Christmas was over, I survived Aunt Cissy and her ball. Got see Neville and Draco, exchanged rare Chocolate Frog cards with them whilst hiding from Draco’s mum. Finished reading Robert’s book for the second time but wasn’t allowed to attempt any of the spells he’d written about because I’m not old enough.   
Hermione was still in Cardiff but she did send Leonidas to tell me that she loved the magical portable bookcase I got her (think of a wardrobe trunk but with shelves instead and it can shrink and grow into a very large, three sectioned bookcase). Neville was off to family in the States and Draco had gone to southern France where the Malfoys hail from, they had a villa there. Nym was back to work and Harry was at Hogwarts.   
This left me tossing the quaffle through tallest hop and rushing to catch it before it hit the ground on New Year’s Eve. I crashed several times in the past few days. Aunt Andy had ended up digging out Nym’s old Quidditch kit, especially the helmet and pads.   
Seventy-fifth pass and I missed the quaffle, it hit the ground and disappeared into the snow bank. I landed to retrieve it and was promptly tackled, my shoulder found the quaffle and my face was filled with fuzzy brown hair. There was giggling too.  
“Hullo, Hermione,” I was slightly winded “when did you get here?”  
Hermione got off me, still giggling and helped me up “I got here about ten minutes ago, you were quite into that little game you were playing. Very focused.”  
I shrugged “I was bored and Aunt Andy wouldn’t let me play with matches.”  
The fizzy headed girl have me a playful shove and pulled me towards the house, my outdoors wear removed at the door. The Grangers and my guardians were drinking tea at the kitchen table, talking about the holidays as Hermione and I snuck up to my room. We basically did what the adults were doing down stairs, talking about our holidays.   
Cardiff had been fun, Hermione got to make up a lot of lies to tell her grandparents about that private school she’d gotten accepted into for smart people. There were presents (mostly books…from everyone) and she’d gotten in trouble for punching her cousin in the face when he started picking on her.   
“You’re right, by the way,” she frowned “bullies do stop when you use violence.”  
I shrugged and caught Tiberius before he could pounce on Forge “they just want a weak target. Also, the guys and I have been a bad influence on you.”  
Hermione nodded and took Tiberius from me, hugging him tightly as he purred loudly. We spent the day going through my little library, discussing Robert’s book and writing down which spells we should learn first and making a blanket fort in the corner of my room.   
We got to stay up late, giggling at the adults who were pretty well drunk by the time the New Year came. They gave us snacks and sparkling cider, letting Jubilee watch over us for the night. We slept in the blanket fort with Jubilee and tossed about ideas for the elf a better uniform, something that stood out.   
……

The train back had a different energy than the one headed to London. We found the same motley group that we had before; Susan, Megan, Terry and Su. They’d each had a fun Christmas and they thanked me for the candy I’d sent. I felt like it’d been worth the little effort, help make friends across the houses.   
They all got a kick out of the story of the Tiberius attacking my lion pillow, who was packed safely in my trunk. Angie found us later in the ride, like she had before, but sporting her new book bag that I’d gotten her for Christmas. Her other one was from first year and looking rather run down and starting to get holes.   
Harry and the twins were a sight for sore eyes but there was something…when Harry was telling us about his presents (I’d gotten him some better fitting clothes with Jubilee’s help for the sizes like I’d been threatening to do since I’d met the kid) he faltered a bit and hesitated near the end when he mentioned something about a cloak. His eyes flicked to me for a second before he prompted Hermione for her Christmas story. I looked over at Neville, he’d noticed too. His gaze shift to Ron who was eagerly listening to Hermione.   
There was a noticeable shift now that school was back in session. The rest of January and most of February seem to float by rather quickly. I was introduced to a new holiday and found it just as horrible as Kaylee did; Valentine’s Day. The whole castle seemed to have turned pink and the older girls were giggly, twitchy and making strange looks at the boys. Katie and I walked away from Angie and Alicia when they started making eyes at the twins; there may have been kisses too.   
There were paper hearts flying about the place, love songs played throughout the Gryffindor tower…all bloody damn day. Hermione and Neville found my dislike of the day rather amusing. So glad that it was on a Friday and that Snape was such a grouch. It seemed like the only place in the castle that wasn’t pink.   
Speaking of Snape, for some odd reason he’d taken to stalking Harry, he’d started just before Valentine’s. Seemed that wherever Harry was then that’s where Snape was. That made library visits very uncomfortable. It was around this time Draco started acting like a little twat again but did apologize for attacking Neville once he had the chance (leg locking curse hadn’t been too bad, other than Neville having to hop about). Crabbe and Goyle weren’t helpful to Draco’s continued good behavior.   
Both Neville and I knew this, it was hard to accept. Just like it wasn’t Snape who’d jinxed Harry’s broom, it was Quirrel. Neither Harry, Hermione nor Ronald believed me on that one. Didn’t help my case much when the Gryffindor vs. Hufflepuff game came around and it was Snape acting as referee.   
“Where’s Hooch?” Neville asked as the Potions Master lurked out onto the pitch with the ball box and broom in hand.   
I shrugged “my detention ended with her in January and I only had a week with McGonagall. Neither of them mentioned this was in the plans.”  
“This is so going to hurt Gryffindor’s chances at the cup,” Ron whined kicking the bottom of the railing “he’s gonna make sure that Hufflepuff wins!”  
Hermione rolled her eyes “honestly, I don’t think it’ll be that bad!”   
Even Hagrid gave Hermione a look of disbelief. In the end, the game was quick, brutal and filled with a high number of penalties for all five minutes that it was played. Harry found the snitch within that five minutes and ended what would have been a very ugly game. Gryffindor won and there were some that didn’t like that. Such at Draco, who found us as we were heading back up to the castle.   
“Think you’re so special, Potter?” he demanded his fist clenched and his two gorillas standing behind him.   
I nodded towards Neville, we’d discussed this after the last time that Neville had gotten on the wrong end of Draco’s wand. I had copied Robert’s book like Aunt Bridget had and gave it to Neville. With a bit of confidence, Neville could be just as great in any class as he was in herbology. Given a different professor he might even be good at potions.   
“What are you barking about this time, Malfoy?” Harry asked, his broom over his shoulders. Totally wide open for an attack.  
Draco’s fists clenched tighter “can’t even play a simple game without trying to be famous about it!” he sneered   
Ron was going for his wand to threaten Draco when Neville and I attacked. They were simple hexes sent at Draco’s shadows but it worked. Crabbe’s hair starting growing rapidly, becoming neon green while Goyle’s tie took to slapping his face and the end of it started biting at his nose. There was no fight after that as the three Slytherins ran away.   
“Miss Black, Mr. Longbottom,” McGonagall’s voice was strained and very stern, she’d watched the whole thing as she’d been coming off the stands “why is it when there’s trouble I find either one of you at its heart?”  
“Bad luck,” I offered hastily shoving my wand back up my sleeve into my holster “and this wasn’t us!”   
McGonagall just shook her head as she rubbed at the bridge of her nose “we’re never going to win the house cup,” she muttered “thirty points for attacking fellow students with magic and three nights detention with me.”  
Ron gave me a shove and nearly knocked me on my arse “stop losing us points, BLACK!” he shouted “we’re near to last place now!”   
“I saw you going for your wand, Ronald!” I snapped back and shoved him in return, he did fall on his arse “what Neville and I did kept it bloodless and no innocent bystanders! With the way you wave your wand I’m surprised you accomplish anything!”   
Neville pulled me away before Ron could get up. He put an arm around my shoulders and whispered that we’d done right, kept the fight from getting bigger. Our hexes hadn’t hurt the two boys, much, and points could always be won back.   
Ron wasn’t talking to me or Neville for the rest of the day, not even after dinner when we headed down to Hagrid’s hut (biscuits and thermoses of chocolate and cider at the ready). Hagrid must have forgotten we were coming because he looked very nervous when he opened the door. The big man relented when there was a clanging noise from near his fireplace…actually he just rushed over to the pot by the fire and left us forgotten and standing at the open door.   
“What have you got there, Hagrid?” Hermione asked curiously as she sat down beside me on the loveseat   
“Err…” Hagrid didn’t answer as he reached into the pot with oven mittens on and pulled out a giant egg from the pot he had over the flames “nothing…”  
“Hagrid, that’s a dragon’s egg!” Neville cried as the egg gently turned and was put back in the pot “where did you get it?”  
Hagrid never took his eyes off the egg as the little dragon inside started thrashing against the shell “got of a man down at the Hog’s Head in a game of cards. Always wanted a dragon.”  
Ron shook his head “my brother Charlie works with dragons, Hagrid!” he stressed “they’re not pets!”  
“Nonsense,” Hagrid looked up from the pot “a little training and the little guy will be right as rain.”  
……  
There was no talking the man out of the egg. We stayed for a bit watching him dutifully turn the egg every time it started to wobble. There was no talking to the man. We left but were determined to get Hagrid to see reason because I’m pretty sure that having a pet dragon is slightly illegal.   
Neville met me in the common room later that night. We had more of Robert’s book to go over and Neville wanted to talk before we got stuck in detention for a while. This studying was actually helping Neville in Charms and Transfiguration lessons. His Gran had actually sent him a reward for his climbing grades, just the ever popular Chocolate Frogs but they had made Neville grin.   
“Harry got an invisibility cloak for Christmas,” Neville whispered to me as we were writing down notes on fumos (a smokescreen spell) that could be coupled with just about another and could be either defensive or offensive “Ron convinced him not to tell you and the three of them are still obsessing over Professor Snape and the third floor corridor.”  
I frowned as I leaned back from the table we were at “but why?” I asked confused “what am I going to do with it? It’s Harry’s.”  
“I know this and I tried to convince them that it’s really Quirrel that’s to blame for things but they won’t believe me,” Neville sighed in frustration “Ron keeps pushing them towards Snape because he’s head of Slytherin house. Draco is their ‘arch-rival’.”  
Shaking my head “Draco just needs to get away from those gorillas on his back. I mean, remember how much fun it was to poke fish eyes with him?”  
Neville smiled at the memory “I know and that’s why I agreed not to attack him if it could be helped,” he sighed heavily “I hate politics. I’m going to rubbish as Lord Longbottom. Gran says I have potential like my dad did but my dad was so much greater than I am.”  
“Bah,” I shook my head “your dad did went through different times and I bet you’d be a different person if your parents had gotten raise you. I bet I’d be different too. Bet I wouldn’t have as much trouble with authority being out of outline. Might have even had a better start with that red-headed twit.”  
“Your mum tortured my parents,” Neville said softly, I froze in place “used the Cruciatus Cruse on them,” I felt like I couldn’t breathe as my eyes started watering up “now they’re in St. Mungo’s and they don’t know who I am or who they are for that matter. She drove them insane.”  
He looked up then, at me to find tears streaking down my cheeks. I knew she’d gone away for terrible things, why else would she get the life sentence? All Fraser’s taunts about parental burden suddenly made sense; even Augusta’s criticism of me at Christmas made sense. There were some waiting for me to become my mum. That thought turned my stomach.   
“I am so sorry, Neville,” I managed while trying to compose myself, everything hit me at once; Hermione and Harry’s lying to me again and learning just what a monster the woman I literally came from had been “I had no idea what she’d done.”  
Neville just scooted his chair closer to mine and put his arm around my shoulders, there were tears in his eyes as well “I don’t blame you, I blame You-Know-Who and Bellatrix. You are just as much a victim in this as me, remember you told me she’d been different before that bastard got his hands on her.”  
I nodded using my sleeve to wipe at my tears and runny nose “you know, his name is really Tom Riddle. Makes him less of a dark fairy tale and more human, something tangible to hate,” I leaned my head on Neville’s shoulder “he took both our parents away, twisted them and we’re the ones who suffer for it.”  
“Siblings in common loss,” Neville muttered as he laid his cheek on my head “that’s what Gran called us; you, me and Harry. She was quite impressed by you, said you’d be a different Black than the rest.”  
I chuckled darkly “I’ve read a little bit about the Black family and I don’t want to be anything like them. I don’t want to hate someone just for the blood in their veins or their birth, because that just stupid.”  
“I know,” Neville said pulling away “that’s why I’m your friend. That’s why I will always be your friend.”  
I smiled weakly at him “thank you, Neville. I promise not to tell anyone about your parents.”  
“Thank you,” he sounded genuinely grateful “so, what are you going to do about Harry and Hermione?” Neville asked fiddling with his quill “they won’t let this thing with Snape go.”  
My heart sank further “I don’t really know, they promised not to lie anymore. What can I do?”  
“Could feed Ronald the Giant Squid.” Neville offered, that made me smile because I liked that idea.   
….  
Ron’s birthday came a week after Harry’s Quidditch game, well a week and a day because it was on a Sunday. He let everyone one know about it and very loudly too. That tired old Weasley owl arrived with the morning mail with a small box after nearly crashing into Ron himself. Ron seemed rather disappointed with the homemade candies and card that his parents and little sister sent him. Even the dancing rubber chicken that the twins got him from Hogsmeade nor the candy that Percy gave him seemed to make the boy happy.   
Harry had gotten him comic books out of that catalogue that’d been left over from Christmas and gave in when Ron begged to ride Harry’s broom (the twins sniggered at this and Percy smacked them…I didn’t get it). Hermione gave Ron a better quill with colored ink. He thought better of rejecting it and calling Hermione a nerd or something when he seen me over Hermione’s shoulder cracking my knuckles. Ronald wanted to but didn’t, he’s learning.  
There was some cake at lunch, not as varied as when it was for me or Hermione. He grumbled at that but let it go when he got his very own cake. Neville and I just sat apart from the trio, joining Angie, Katie and the twins (who watched with looks of dismay). The twins were debating if Ron’s behavior was because he was the youngest son or because he was just that way by nature.   
The day ended with me punching Ron in the face because he was taunting me that he’d gotten to ride a broom that wasn’t taken away. With Neville’s help, Professor Sprout (she’d been coming back from the greenhouses), believed that it was an accident of bad timing and fist bumps. Thank the divines that Neville’s natural talent is herbology had him in Sprout’s good graces.   
Monday marked the start of Neville’s and I’s detention with McGonagall. Three nights we spent helping her organize the transfiguration journals and books she kept in her office. It was that or scrub her classroom clean with toothbrushes. I think she was getting tired of us being in trouble, quite frankly.   
….  
Nothing really significant happened after that for a while. Well…besides Hermione chiding me for hitting Ron on his birthday. As it was just Ron, Neville and I there when it happened…Neville and I stuck to our story. There was classes and the trio’s obsession with Snape and Fluffy. There was the five of us trying to get Hagrid to give up the egg, Hermione even checked out books on the subject.  
The greatest thing happened, though, on the First of April. It all made so much sense now, the Weasley twins…why they pranksters. It’s because they were born that way, born on April Fool’s Day. This year it happened to fall on a Wednesday, but Fred and George didn’t care.   
Should have known something was up when I found the three Gryffindor chasers at the breakfast table sans the twins. We were half way through the morning meal when the ceiling started raining confetti that turned to zoo animals when the pieces landed. I hadn’t realized the twins like the lion confetti that much as I watched a pride of purple cheetahs take down an orange gazelle.   
Hermione didn’t much like this because the piece kept getting stuck in her bushy hair. The rabbits were starting to colonize. Still, though, no signs of twins. Professor Sprout was the one to help Hermione out by summoning all the little rabbits (that had multiplied by now) out of Hermione’s hair. Before banishing the rabbits, Professor Sprout told Hermione that she probably needed to take a shower as soon as possible to wash any hanger-on’s off. The rabbits had been making a wren in there.   
As we’d been out at the green houses for the first lesson block, we didn’t get to see the twin’s next prank. There was a foot of frothy and thick bubbles that lined the corridors of four floors. Filch was not at all happy as he ushered us in the front doors and told us to keep moving. The bubbles just weren’t in the corridor, McGonagall just taught the lesson as if she wasn’t up to her knees in foam.   
And…still no twins. Not even when it came to lunch. Angie hazarded a guess that the boys were in the kitchens with the house elves and that she was going to kill them when they came out of hiding. Hermione hadn’t been the only one having trouble with the paper animals.   
Next prank came as we were sitting down to for Kaylee’s History lesson. The big door to the room squeaked open, the foam was gone by now and it its place came little stone pigs. There were thousands of them and they were loud. Their hooves clip clapping on stone floors and their snorting echoing off the stone walls. Like McGonagall had, Kaylee just went with it and amplified her voice so we could hear her.   
In Charms, Flitwick banished the pigs out of his classroom and locked the door once everyone was inside. Then he silenced the door to block out the pigs. Amazing what you can do when you’re a charms master. By dinner the transfiguration spell had ended and the pigs turned to dust. After dinner there was a party in the tower…the twins finally showing themselves.   
They wouldn’t accept graduations on the pranks because it ‘wasn’t’ them, yea right. The tower looked like the kitchens had worked over time because there was food and drink of the desert verity everywhere. Muggle music that I’d gotten the twins hooked on played loudly from a record player in the corner, Black Sabbath was currently on.   
That had been my present to the boys, they’d been asking about what I’d been listening too when I’d drag my little radio and headphones down to the common room. I’d given them the present the night before because they’d been asking to borrow my radio. Why not give them their own music?  
It was nearing midnight when McGonagall showed to break up the party. She had her hair down again and was in her tartan dressing robe. A flick of her wand and the music died. A scowl and the youngest of us, and the smartest, were already heading off to bed while she started berating the others. Those who didn’t leave immediately got stuck cleaning the common room without elven help.


	14. Dragon Bites and Centaur Horseshoes

Chapter Fourteen: Dragon Bites and Centaur Horseshoes 

Three weeks after the twin’s birthday a select few of us were celebrating another birthday…of sorts. Neville and I had followed Ron, Harry and Hermione down to Hagrid’s hut. Harry had gotten a note from the big man, asking him to be there. To be honest, Neville and I were starting to feel like outsiders; we had almost declined but Hermione did her puppy dog look.   
Harry still hadn’t told me about his invisibility cloak nor about the mirror he’d found over Christmas break. I had to learn through Neville that Harry had heard Snape and Quirrell arguing in one of the corridors outside the library because Harry was breaking in to the restricted section. They were looking for more information about Nicholas Flamel.   
Hagrid answered the door looking confused, slightly hurried and very tired “what are you doing here, Harry?”  
Harry raised an eyebrow “you asked us to come, Hagrid, remember you sent Hedwig with a note this morning.”  
The big man blinked “oh, right, o’ course, come on, then,” he turned and entered the house.   
“What’s going on, Hagrid?” Harry asked watching the big man go to the chair that’d been pulled preciously close to the fire   
Hagrid grinned “my egg’s about ta hatch,” he rubbed his mitten covered hands “have a seat!” he called   
Neville nudged me “did you bring the biscuits?” he asked   
“Like I would forget,” I smirked and brought out the tin from my bag “so, Hagrid,” I called “you ever decided what kind of dragon the egg came from?”  
“Nah,” he shook his head “but I’m hoping Ukrainian Ironbelly, or a Welsh Green.”  
I looked to Neville “want to place bets?”   
Hermione rolled her eyes “seriously?” she demanded “you two are going to bet about this?”  
Neville and I shrugged “meh,” we said together and Neville continued with “why not? We could place bets on worse things, like what the dragon sets on fire first.”  
“…or who gets bit first, my bets on Ron for that one.” I grinned, maybe Neville and I have been spending too much time with the twins.   
Ron had opened his mouth to replay when Hagrid started bouncing in his seat excitedly. He reached into the pot with the thinning bottom and took out the vibrating egg. With a gentleness was astounding as he placed the egg on a towel that was on the coffee table. He clapped his gloved hands together as cracks started forming in the shell.   
The vibrating got worse and the cracks got a little bit wider. This wasn’t going very fast and must have made the little dragon furious because all at once the shell exploded outwards. The little beast was covered in bits of shell, all spread out on its back. Hagrid cooed like a happy papa as he helped the newly hated dragon out by removing the shell fragments and helping the dragon to roll over.   
“Awe, isn’t he beautiful?” Hagrid cooed running a finger down the back of the creature’s head.   
“Beautiful?” the five of us asked as one   
Ron shook his head “Hagrid, that’s a Norwegian Ridgeback, my brother Charlie works with them in Romania!” he said, his voice serious “they’re not pets, Hagrid!” those words sounded familiar coming from the red-head.   
“Pfft!” Hagrid just shook his head as he stroked the dragon’s head “a little training and love and Norbert will be just fine.”  
“Norbert?” Harry asked skeptically   
Hagrid shrugged “got ta have a name, don’t he?”   
“He’s right,” my shrug mimicked Hagrid’s “but Hagrid, you know you can’t keep this little guy, right?”  
Hagrid looked up with a small glare “why not?” he asked “I can keep him in the forest and Norbert won’t bother the school!”  
“What about the creatures in the forest?” Neville asked “from what my uncle says, the forest has Centaurs and they’re very territorial.”   
“I could always write Charlie for ya, Hagrid,” Ron offered as he reached out to pet the little dragon “he’s not so bad…OW!” Ron cried as Norbert turned his head and bit into the fleshy bit of Ron’s hand between his index finger and his thumb.  
“Called it!” I cried as Hagrid had to pry the dragon’s jaws part “maybe you should have fed the little guy first, Hagrid.”  
Hagrid winched as he got Ron’s hand free “probably right, Athena. I’ve some raw meat here and a first aid kit,” he got the first aid kit first and handed it to Hermione “could you, Hermione?”   
I held the box open for Hermione while trying to keep a smug look off my face. Mostly because Hermione would have chided me if I would have laughed at Ron but I so called that. Hermione was careful as she used a cleaning potion and an antiseptic salve before she started bandaging Ron’s hand.   
“Hagrid,” Hermione frowned “I’ve been reading up on dragons and they say their bites are poisonous.”  
Hagrid looked up from where he was feeding Norbert with tongs, Harry holding the plate “nah, he’ll be fine. Walk it off, Ron.”  
“Walk it off?” Ron let out a high pitched whine that caused Norbert to shriek in protest   
I had to swallow back a giggle at that. My appreciation of the possible giant grew. We left not long after that when Norbert burped a fireball at Harry whilst trying to get the plate that Harry had, also there was curfew. The twins were so hearing about this. Neville and I were still sniggering about Ron and the belched fireball when we reached the common room.   
Weirdly enough, it was George who wrote to Charlie about Norbert the next morning. He used Gorgo to send the letter. Ron was still too busy whining about his hand, though I can’t begrudge him that. Dragon bites, even ones from hatchlings, are said to throb and sting constantly. Well, mostly from the hatchlings because the fully grown dragons can bite a man in half.   
A week went by before Gorgo returned. We accomplished in a week what we’d failed to do in two month all thanks to Ron’s hand. The bite had been turned sour and had become severely infected. Hagrid cried a bit but read Charlie’s letter twice before agreeing. There was a couple of guys at the preserve in Northern Ireland who could fly over and collect the rapidly growing hatchling.   
If we wanted to keep Hagrid out of trouble then we’d have to get the dragon to the top of the astronomy tower. Gorgo flew the note agreeing to Ireland and we got back a date and time; Friday the 9th, midnight. Felt like we were in spy movie, Harry giggled when I told him this and Hermione looked disapproving as we moved through the dark corridors heading outside. Neville just looked confused.   
Norbert was now the size of a bulldog and did not like the crate that Hagrid had put him in, kept thrashing about and spewing fire. Couldn’t see why the workers couldn’t just come Hagrid’s hut. That would have been much easier than the four of us lugging the fiery crate through the castle, up a dozen flights of stairs to the two men lounging on the edge of the tower with their brooms. They looked bored.   
The two men were nice, said hullo before clipping lines that connected to the crate and their brooms. They worked in unison to rise up and kept the hatchling level. One waved goodbye and then they were gone, Norbert still spewing little bursts of flame. We stayed there until the men were out of sight in the moonlight.   
“Never before has my house lost so many points in one year,” the four of us froze at the sound of a very disappointed Scottish lit “I am beyond understanding at this point.”  
We turned slowly to find McGonagall in her dressing robe with Draco beside her “uhh…we’re a figment of your imagination?” I offered   
McGonagall snorted irritably “someday, lass, that just might work but not tonight. Come along.”   
….  
In McGonagall’s office again but not for a nice chat this time. Neville, Harry, Hermione, Draco and I sat in very uncomfortable chairs in front of her desk. Draco whispered that he was sorry and nodded when I asked of Crabbe or Goyle were involved. Neville over heard this and scowled.   
“Would anyone of you like to tell me why you were not only out of bed but out of bounds after curfew?” McGonagall asked sitting down at her desk, having sent a missive off to Professor Snape about Draco.   
“Star gazing?” I offered   
McGonagall growled at me “how about not from you, lassie,” she looked to the other three “and feel free not to lie to me or the consequences will be much worse.”  
Neville gulped, Harry and Hermione looked ready to go down with this ship “we were helping Hagrid,” he said softly to which Hermione and Harry protested “he had a hatchling dragon and we sent it off to Charlie Weasley in Romania. It bit Ron.”  
“Called that,” I muttered with my arms folded across my chest “so totally called that.”  
McGonagall just blinked at Neville and her face darkened when I nodded “well,” she growled “as good intentioned as you were, you still broke the rules. The rules are there to protect you and not to be flaunted whenever you think you’ve the right to help,” her voice was cold and hard “fifty points will be taken from each of you and you will all serve detention,” Draco shot a smug look at Harry “oh, don’t think you’re safe from this Mr. Malfoy. You lost points and are in detention too.”  
“Whut?” Draco’s smug look vanished as there was knock on the office door   
“Enter!” McGonagall huffed and the door swung open to reveal Professor Snape “good, Severus, you’re here. I have deducted fifty points from Mr. Malfoy and he is to serve detention for breaking curfew and being out of bounds.”  
Snape glared at Draco “I see,” he folded his arms across his chest “and the others?”  
“Same punishment,” McGonagall bristled “they still might get worse.”  
Snape’s eyes flashed to me before sweeping back to the green and silver clad boy beside me, he jerked his head towards the door. After Draco had left, I realized just how much Grams had taken from us. I thought my eyes were going to pop out of my head.   
“Two hundred points!” I gasped and gaped at the woman “you’re gonna to get me murdered by my housemates!”  
Grams slapped the top of her desk with her hand and pointed a deadly finger at me “maybe you should have thought about that before pulling another stupid stunt!” she said with a deathly calm tone “you should have come to me! I would have helped and Hagrid would have stayed out of trouble! All four of you should have come to me, that’s what I’m here for!” her face had turned red as the four of us sunk lower in our seats her accent growing thicker “I’ve never seen first years who were so irresponsible and lackin’ good judgment! The next time ye’ve a problem ye will come to me, do ya understand?” all four of us nodded meekly. Great divines she was scary “good, now you’ll be severing three weeks of detention,” Hermione and Harry sputtered indignantly , Neville whimpered and I just gaped “now, go back to bed!”  
She escorted back to the Fat Lady, smacked me upside the head before turning and heading back to her quarters. Fred and George were waiting up wanting to hear what had happened. Hermione told them what had occurred, we other three were too…distraught is a good word. The twins descended up on us with the little couch pillows when they heard we’d lost two hundred points. Now we were never going to win the house cup, Slytherin would win because we’d been neck in neck with them before this.   
……  
Nobody wanted to talk to us that next morning nor the morning after, not even on Monday when Ron got out of the infirmary. He wasn’t happy about the lost points and he glared at Neville, calling him a tattler. Harry stepped in and told Ron to knock it off. Neville took the wisest course of action because McGonagall was prepared to do much worse than just take 200 points.   
The only one of who wasn’t truly miffed at this, not being talked to by the older students, was Hermione because this gave us more time to study for our exams (except the twins and Angie, they still talked to us). She’d started back in March, making each of us a study schedule and revision sheets. Hermione was anxious about the upcoming exams and only Ron seemed not to understand it was just best to go with Hermione’s flow.   
For our detentions, McGonagall split us up. Neville and Hermione were with Filch cleaning in some part of the castle, Harry and Draco were cleaning old caldrons with Snape and I got a toothbrush, bar of soap and a bucket of water from McGonagall. She had me cleaning the desks in her classroom. Kaylee had no sympathy as she stopped in to visit McGonagall during these times.   
McGonagall desks were gleaming after two weeks, even her desk looked good as new. Our last detention was different. It was a Tuesday in late May and that morning, McGonagall send us all notes saying we’d be serving that last night Hagrid and that it would start at eleven…because nothing says you done wrong by breaking curfew like sending us out after curfew! Some people need to sort out their priorities.   
That morning, after the notes had arrived, Neville had whispered to me what Harry had told him, Hermione and Ron the night before. That on his way back from the dungeons he’d heard Professor Quirrell in the hallway, whimpering like he was being threatened. Somehow, Harry believed that it was Snape, who’d cut out early from their detention, who was doing the threatening and that Snape was going after the stone.   
Hermione wanted to go to Dumbledore with this but Harry just said no and that there was no proof for any of it. After our dramatic fall from grace, he didn’t want to meddle in anything without concrete proof. I was proud of Harry for that but livid that I’d been left out, again.   
I was quiet for the rest of the day after that. My mind plagued by this situation. I mean they could at least include me in the conversations and then I’d get to argue the Snape vs. Quirrell theory. That’d be nice, at least.   
Hermione noticed my quietness and my glares at Quirrell during DADA that morning and had asked me what was wrong. We were at lunch. All that hurt, feeling of abandonment at being left out and anger (because of them and what I’d learned that Bellatrix had done) had built up the more I had thought about it.  
“Oh,” I chuckled darkly, this got the boys’ attention from across the table “I was just wondering when Harry was going to tell me about his invisibility cloak he got for Christmas or that big mirror he found,” Harry and Hermione paled while Ron turned red “or the fact that Harry keeps over hearing Quirrell or the fact that you all seem to think that Snape’s the bad guy in all this Philosopher’s Stone business. When were you lot going to tell me that you were still researching Flamel because you didn’t believe what I’d told you about him? I thought we’d already hashed out that you all weren’t going to fucking lie to me anymore!”  
“Athena, I…” Harry’s voice cracked “you wouldn’t have believed us about Snape!” he tried to defend   
“You’re right, I would have said that he wasn’t the bad guy here. Major ass-hat, yes, going after that stone, no!” I snapped “he may have something personal against you, Harry, but I don’t believe he’s trying to kill you. If he was then he’d accomplish it!” I growled “he’s a potion master and he’s been overseeing your detentions for the last two weeks or so. Wouldn’t have mattered if Draco was there or not.”  
“I knew you were a snake lover!” Ron cried   
He shrieked in outrage when I flipped his plate into his lap, he had pudding on his plate “and you’re an ignorant baboon with the deductive skills of a teaspoon!” I growled, now on my feet and leaning over the table menacingly “how you are able tie your own shoes baffles me. I think you follow Harry and Hermione around so there’s someone there to think for you,” I was quickly getting everyone’s attention “I think that the only thing you will ever be suited for, professional, is a damn doorstop! Though I doubt you could do that either! If you’d just put aside your prejudices and open you’re bloody eyes then you’d start to see things clearly, and you’d stop trying to turn my friends against…”  
“Whiskers,” George whispered having wrapped his arms around me and pulled me back across the bench “I think you should calm down. Hissy lions don’t make good decisions. You lose us anymore points and the older kids will retaliate!”  
I took a long breath as his presence calmed me down “you’re right, George,” I had no desire to find out what they’d do to me “lessons start soon anyways.”  
George quickly let me go, watching as I grabbed my bag and walked away. I stalked out of the Great Hall and glared at anyone who strayed to close on my way to Kaylee’s classroom. The door was locked so I found a nice place to sit on the floor in an alcove just behind one of the statues of armor.   
I stayed quiet, for which I was happy about as Peeves floated by singing a dirty limerick and looking for trouble. For some reason the poltergeist hadn’t messed with me this year; everyone else had been fair game. I had encountered the pest once while heading for the library but he just hovered in place, gave me the once over and went the other way.  
Kaylee started a bit when I came out from behind the armor, she was tapping her classroom door with her wand. She raised an eyebrow when I went to the desk that was the farthest away from where I normally sat with Hermione and Harry. I was thankful she didn’t ask what was wrong, she knew that wouldn’t work out well for her. She knew what the look on my face meant, had it that time that Fraser tried to get me to slay the lion cub.   
Neville wearily took the seat next to mine. He made to speak but I just shook my head. I didn’t want to lash out at him. That would have been unfair to Neville and I already felt bad enough on his account. Hermione looked hurt when she found I wasn’t sitting in my normal place; Harry stopped her from coming over to me presumably to talk about what happened at lunch.   
I could feel Hermione’s eyes burn in to my side as Kaylee talked about Ilvermorny’s and Hogwarts’s roles in the American Revolution. For once the brilliant girl wasn’t taking notes. This was serious but I was too angry to care, they’d broken their promise.   
When the lesson was over and a study sheet for the upcoming exam were handed out, I was the first out of the room and headed for Transfiguration. Again I found a seat as far away from Harry and Hermione as possible. McGonagall took notice and actually reprimanded Hermione for not paying attention during her lesson.   
McGonagall kept me after class “are you and Miss Granger having problems again?”   
I gritted my teeth and clenched my fists “she and Harry keep lying to me,” I told her but unable to look at her “am I so much like my mother that I deserve this?” I asked, my eyes snapping up to her “why didn’t you tell me that my mother was a monster?” tears welled up in my eyes as my stomach twisted “why didn’t anybody tell me what she’d done? That she ruined Neville’s family?”  
McGonagall’s strong hands grasped my face “you are nothing like what your mother became. She was twisted with dark magic, she was taken from us. Bellatrix Lestrange was nothing like Bellatrix McGonagall or even Bella Black.”  
“She still became a monster! The whole Black family were monsters!” I cried holding on to her wrists, my breaths were ragged “I’ve read about them and I don’t want to be like them.”  
McGonagall’s eyes flicked to the door where more students were starting to come in, she motioned for one of them to come forward. Then she conjured a handkerchief to dry my face and asked Angie to take me back to our dorms; the chaser would have a free pass for the day.   
With her arm over my shoulders, Angie got me out of the room before more students could pile in. Angie didn’t take me to the dorms, though, she took me down to the Quidditch pitch. Most everyone had overheard what had happened at lunch and Angie knew this had happened before.   
Instead she put me on her broom, a newer Cleansweep model, gave me as set of old goggles and released the snitch before telling me to bring it back to her. Little did I know that she’d turned up the difficulty of the snitch to semi-pro, the little golden ball had me chasing it all over the stadium. Caught it three different times and Angie just kept letting it go.   
The stress of the day mixed with emotional dump from breaking down with McGonagall added to the physical exertion from flying had me on the ground, panting after the fifth time I’d brought the snitch back. Angie sat down beside me on the grass and pulled her broom to her.   
“So, you and the golden trio had another fight?” Angie asked   
I raised an eyebrow “golden trio?” I asked “what the ble…what?” I asked stopping myself because I knew that Angie would smack me for bad language   
“Harry, Ron and Hermione,” Angie shrugged “that’s what the twins have taken to calling them,” she held up her hands for peace “seemed easier than calling them by name.”  
Letting my head fall back to the ground I stared up at the cloud dotted sky “they keep lying to me and excluding me from things on purpose because Ronald thinks I’m untrustworthy,” I admitted “plus…I learned something about my mum that was, well…I wish I’d never learned it to be honest. I wish that I didn’t know what kind of a monster she was or is.”  
Angie nodded “I think with your friends, Athena, you should really think about if they’re really your friends or not. Some people can like each other and they can be friends but they’re not your best friends. Friends who are always there for you.”  
I sat up and looked to her “you mean like good acquaintances vs. real friends?” I asked and she nodded “but I’ve known Hermione since before the start of this term year, met her in Diagon Alley. She’s spent time at my house and me at hers, sleep overs and stuff.”  
The older girl just shrugged again “friendships can be complicated and they don’t always make sense. I think Hermione has been a lonely girl for a very long time and just wants friends. My mum said once that emotions can make people do the strangest things and they won’t always know why.”   
I mulled that over as Angie pulled me to my feet. We returned her broom to her locker in the Gryffindor locker rooms. The older girl kept her arm around my shoulders as we made our way back up to the castle to dinner. She kept me with her and the twins, Neville joined asking if I was alright. I nodded and thanked him, commenting the flying is a very good way to work out my temper.   
“Worked for your Gran,” he smirked lowly “she was a chaser for the Gryffindor team back in the day till she got hurt bad in her seventh year playing Slytherin.”  
I glanced over at teachers’ table and found McGonagall watching me, concern on her chiseled features. She gave me a questioning look and I just nodded. With that she went back to her dinner and the conversation she’d been having with Professor Sprout. I went back to my own plate, the wheels in my head turning.  
….  
Neville and I sat in the common room working on homework until it was time to meet Filch at his office. Hermione and Harry both looked miserable but kept quiet as we followed Filch down to Hagrid’s hut. The big man had Fang (his very large and cowardly dog) and Draco waiting with him outside by his pumpkin patch.   
“Evening, Hagrid,” Filch greeted the man while Mrs. Norris sat in his arms looking like she was royalty “brought you some troublemakers. Merlin, I wish we still used the old punishments. Thumbscrews in the dungeons, the screams echoing off the walls.”  
“How the bleeding hell did you get this job?” I demanded of the scraggily man, something about his attitude had set me off “was there an ‘are you sadistic’ box you checked on the application?”  
Filch glared at me and the cat hissed dangerous “you better watch yourself, Miss Black,” he warned “you don’t need any more trouble for your house this year.”  
“Well then keep your perverted love of torture to yourself, eh?” I growled, that’s what made me cross “causes it’s not helping your public image.”  
“I can take ‘em from here, Argus,” Hagrid said quickly cutting off Filch’s head of steam that was building “right, going in to the forest now,” he had a large crossbow in his arms.   
The caretaker sneered at me and the cat batted from her perch as they turned and headed back for the castle. I watched them leave as Draco squeaked and demanded if he’d heard right, that Hagrid was taking us into the forest. Oh, cause that’s going to end well.  
“Aye,” Hagrid nodded after a while of walking “there’s something that being attacking the unicorns and we’re going lookin’ for it.”   
“But…but…but there’s things out there in the trees!” Draco protested “like werewolves, dark creatures and big spiders!”  
Hagrid smirked “werewolves don’t come this close to the castle grounds. I’d be more worried about the centaurs.”  
I raised an eyebrow at the man “so you’re taking a bunch of first years into the forest to deal with a unicorn killer, centaurs and giant spiders?” I asked skeptically “really? What can we do? Use a tickle charm on them?”   
Hagrid shook his head “no, I’ll deal with whatever we find,” he knelt and touched something on the ground, his fingers came up with silvery glowing liquid coating them “see here, another one’s been attacked. We’ll have to split into groups to see which way it went.”  
“Wait!” Draco squeaked again “we’re breaking up into groups? You’re not going with us?!”  
The big man nodded as he stood and wiped his fingers clean on his pant leg “yep, Athena, you and Neville go with Draco down this path,” he pointed “Harry, Hermione and I will go down this way.”  
“Fine,” Draco sneered to cover up his fear “but we get Fang,” the dog looked to him hearing his name.   
“Okay,” Hagrid conceded “just know he’s a bloody coward.”

….  
Draco and Neville clung to Fang’s leash as we traveled down the path that Hagrid had pointed us. I, meanwhile, had my wand out and kept quiet like Fraser had taught me trying to listen for danger. The boys were making that hard as they spooked at every noise that the forest produced.   
They were feeding off each other’s fear and scared each other even worse. I’d been so focused on the forest that I didn’t notice Draco accidently goosing Neville, who shot red sparks into the air. I jumped sky high at the noise and whirled around ready to throw that tickling charm at someone, or one of the other spells that were in Robert’s book.   
“What the hell, Neville?” I demanded   
He whimpered “I thought something touched my leg.”  
Hermione was the first to reach us, tackling me in a hug that drove the air out of my lungs. She took me to the ground before getting on her knees to check me over for cuts and scrapes. The brunette was very loudly asking if I was hurt, there were sticks poking me in the back. Thankfully, Hagrid pulled her away and helped me to my feet.   
“Neville got spooked,” I managed between slow, deep breathes “I think Draco accidently touched him.”  
Hagrid looked at the two boys in question, both still clutching Fang’s leash and sighed heavily “right,” he shook his head “change up then, Harry will switch spots with Neville then.”  
“But Hagrid!” Hermione protested   
“Nope, sorry Hermione,” Hagrid’s hand dwarfed Hermione’s shoulder “you stay will me and Neville, come on.”  
Hermione glared at the big man as he turned and walked back the way he came. She gave me a quick hug and then had to run to catch up with him and Neville. Looking over at Draco, who was still whimpering, I put a finger to my lips and hushed him. When he was quiet I jerked my head down the trail.   
Five minutes later, Harry poked my shoulder and pointed towards something silvery and glowing on the path ahead. It was a little puddle of unicorn blood, there was a trial of it dotting the fauna that led off the path to the right. Went down a little hill and whatever was beyond that was hidden by the foliage.   
Harry decided he wanted to go first but slipped in the thick undergrowth and in trying to keep his balance, he grabbed my wrist. We both went tumbling down the little hill. Found the unicorn…after we’d righted ourselves and Draco with Fang raced down to see if we were okay. It was the lowl feral growl that got our attention.   
A shrouded and cloaked figure was hunched over the pure white form of a dead or dying unicorn. As it had been slurping the blood, I’m going say the unicorn was dead. Time seemed to stop as the hood of the cloaked figure started to turn towards us, the moonlight filtering through the canopy above was not helping the very spooky atmosphere.   
The creature growled again, we could see the blood around its mouth. Draco yelped and followed Fang back up the hill when the creature before us shot up to a tall standing height. I raised my wand as my cousin disappeared. The creature laughed at me so I flung a rock at its head, swish and flick.   
It screamed when the rock thunked off its forehead. The thing started to move forward when Harry copied what I did. Another rock smashed into the thing’s face. The creature screamed in rage and put its hands up to its face.   
Harry and I had more rocks floating and started to pelt the creature. The rocks were hovering just in front of us, ready and waiting for the creature to make its next move. In the blue moonlight I thought I seen the creature start to shift forward but it never got the chance to do more than that.   
It had been a while since I’d seen a centaur; just never seen one as intent to stomp something into a pulp that this was one. Deadly front hooves were thrashed out to deliver bone crunching blows towards the creature’s already tender head. The onslaught was too much and the creature…floated...it fled off into the safety of the forest.   
Harry lowered his wand as the palomino colored centaur turned towards us, I did not. I had heard the stories from the Amazons on what centaurs were like. Proud and mystical, very handy with a bow and did not think to highly of humans. They also liked to take advantage of their female captives, there were a few Amazons who had children with centaur like features.  
The centaur looked us over, his strange blue eyes lingering on me before he smiled “smart to be weary, especially in this forest,” his voice was smooth and deep “the stars did predict I would meet two powerful beings tonight, I know of Harry Potter but I do not know of you,” his faun like ears twitched forward to face me “who are you, girl-child.”  
I did not flinch “I am Athena Black, Master Centaur.”  
The horse-man chuckled “you have met my European brethren, I see, I am Firenze,” he nodded and stomped a hoof before looking to the dead unicorn behind him “we should get you out of here before that half-creature returns,” he held out and arm “here, it will be quicker if I give you a ride.”  
I blinked in astonishment as I watch Harry accept the hand and swing up on to the horse-man’s back “seriously?” I asked “I thought you lot frowned on being ridden liked common horses.”  
Firenze just shook his head and held out his hand “you showed bravery in your own defense, besides it is a crime to let youngling such as yourselves stay in such dangerous surroundings.”  
Cautiously, I took the horse-man’s hand and was swung up on to his back behind Harry. I now had another thing to add to my list of ‘weirdest things done’, riding a centaur…a willing centaur. Carefully, Firenze started off…actually I have had no idea which way the castle was at this point. He wound his way through the thick and ancient trees.   
“Why was that thing drinking the unicorn’s blood?” Harry asked suddenly “that is what it was doing? Right?”  
Firenze nodded “it was, unicorn blood is a powerful magical substance. It can ward of death if drank from the body of a unicorn but to kill something so pure and innocent curses and taints the blood,” Firenze explained “it creates a half-creature. Only someone desperate would chose this course, once the act is committed it must be kept up.”  
“Wards off death?” I asked shaking my head “who’d be so desperate?”  
“Who would go after the artifact that your headmaster has hidden in the school?” Firenze asked and chuckled when he looked over his shoulder at our stunned expressions “I have read the stars,” he said “I know what is hidden there and what haunts this forest. An old foe, Harry.”  
Harry frowned and touched his forehead “when the creature turned towards us, my scar hurt,” I’d been too busy to notice that “it was Voldemort!”  
Firenze nodded “yes, it was him.”  
“HARRY! ATHENA!” Hagrid bellowed cutting off our conversation, a look around showed us that we were nearing where we’d broken off into groups. We were on the trail “thank Merlin,” Hagrid gasped when he got to us “I thought I’d lost you lost and that McGonagall was going to do some very unpleasant things to me. I was just about to ask the centaurs for help!”  
“What is this?” a male voice demanded from the tree line behind us, Hagrid was helping us down from the centaur’s back “letting humans ride you like a common nag?”   
Firenze turned his head “I was protecting younglings, Bane, there is no shame in that.”  
The centaur named Bane came from the shadow of the woods “younglings or not, they could have walked instead of degrade yourself!” he hissed, his fist tightening on his bow “they are humans!”  
“I know that,” Firenze sighed “I made my choice Bane, there is no undoing it.”  
Bane hissed before drawing an arrow and putting it between Firenze’s front hooves, it happened so quickly it was a blur “tread carefully, brother,” Bane growled before turning and heading off into the forest.   
Firenze reached down and plucked the arrow from the ground. He let out a long sigh and snapped the thing in half before tossing it aside. Then he bowed his head to Hagrid, Harry and myself and left. We watched until he was gone then Hagrid was herding us towards the castle. Hermione, Neville, Draco and Fang were waiting at his pumpkin patch.


	15. The Hunt for the Philosopher’s Stone

Chapter Fifteen: The Hunt for the Philosopher’s Stone

Ron was waiting up for us, well…Harry and Hermione, when we got back to the common room. He’d been playing with a deck of exploding snaps instead doing the studying like Hermione had left him to doing. I collapsed into the couch and Hermione collapsed next to me.   
“I think that Snape is working for Voldemort!” Harry cried making Neville and Ron flinch  
Ron looked to me before hissing “Harry! Are you sure you want her to hear this? What if she runs to Snape with this?”  
“Really?” I asked “that’s the best you got? How the hell did you convince them to not trust me if that’s the best you got? Huh, Ronald?”  
Harry frowned and then stated firmly “I trust Athena, Ron, I trust her with my life. She saved me tonight when…whatever that was that was that killed the unicorn tried to attack us!”  
“But Harry,” Ron whined “you know you can’t trust her, she’s McGonagall’s…”  
Harry growled and grabbed Ron by the front of his button down shirt “I’ve had enough of your theories! I trust her and she was my friend before you were. Say another thing and our friendship is over!”  
“Harry,” I stood and put a hand on his shoulder “don’t do that, don’t give up your friendship with him because of me. You’re a better person than that.”  
Harry let go of Ron and let out the breath he was holding “fine, but I still think Snape is working with Voldemort.”  
I shook my head “I think you have the wrong bad guy, Harry. I think that Snape’s problem with you isn’t to do with the stone at all.”  
“See! Snake lover!” Ron accused   
I ignored him “Harry, during that first Quidditch match, Quirrell had the same look on his face that Snape did but his lips weren’t moving as much,” I explained “Quirrell is an odd duck, shifty and whatnot. He’s the one who let the troll in, Neville told me that Snape was at the feast the whole time and twins confirmed it.”  
“But Quirrell is cowardly and stutters really badly,” Hermione countered “how could it be him.”  
“Fraser always said that it was the quiet ones you had to look out for, the unsuspecting ones that put the dagger in your back,” I shrugged “why can’t he be as much a suspect as Snape?”  
“Why are you defending that snake?” Ron demanded   
I sighed and shook my head “I’m not really defending him, you lot have just made yourself blind. Like tonight when I was with Neville and Draco. They were so scared that that’s what they fixated on so totally that they were easily spooked. If they would have calmed down and listened they would have heard the forest.”  
“Either way, I think we should tell Dumbledore about this,” Hermione said folding her arms across her chest “it might have been Voldemort out there.”  
“Do you have to say his name?” Ron demanded   
….  
Harry decided not to tell Dumbledore about the forest, my theory about Quirrell had put holes in his theories about Snape and he was really rethinking everything. It seemed to be forgotten the next morning. A morning to which Neville and I found ourselves back in friendly graces with Harry and Hermione.   
Hermione was glued to my side after that, even if I didn’t want her to be. It was a little suffocating being dragged everywhere and most of the time it was to the library to study for the upcoming exams. Even the professors were doing review games in class, except for Snape.   
We sat Charms first, watching as we all went one by one to make a pineapple tap dance across a desk for Flitwick. That was fun, Seamus’s was halfway through the dance when it exploded and sent pureed pineapple everywhere. Flitwick got a face full of it and it was a good thing the man wore glasses because that could have stung.   
Neville made it through, just barely, but we were rooting him on. Hermione, Harry and I passed with flying colors. I think Flitwick would have granted us points if he could of but couldn’t because this was the final test for the year. Ron struggled but managed through.   
Astronomy was that evening in a classroom in the astronomy tower. It asking for the names of the planets, moons and their locations. I was very thankful that Professor Sinistra used blank spots or I would have forgotten one or two moons at Jupiter. It was easy if you connected it to mythology. Poor Neville about had a nervous breakdown and Ron fell asleep near the end.  
Potions was alright when we took it the next day just before lunch. Snape asked us to brew a Forgetfulness Potion. This was Neville’s worst subject and it showed. His potion turned out weak but he got it. Harry, Hermione, Draco and I took top marks in the class. Ron’s results were somewhere in the middle. Wouldn’t know for sure though because the result would come out next week.   
In Transfiguration, McGonagall had us turning mice into snuff boxes. That was fun and she even gave extra points if the snuff boxes were pretty. Mine had a mouse cartoon dancing on the cover, McGonagall called me cheeky. It was a mouse cartoon on what was once a mouse. Admittedly it made me laugh so I was happy with it.   
Herbology wasn’t so easy. We were given Mandrake Root to replant, these were the juvenile plants. Baby plant screams give you headaches, adults can kill and the juvenile twats can make your nose bleed and knock you out for several days. Hated these things because the root looks like a little baby and it’s creepy. Not sure how well I scored in that exam, I did pack the little bugger in there pretty tight.   
DADA was the worst though. It was a written tests and half the stuff on there wasn’t covered in class. I could see Hermione freaking out beside me as she read and reread the questions. Nudging her in the side, I mouthed ‘calm down’ and to ‘remember the text book’. What made it worse was that Quirrell’s glare was flicking between me and Harry. I could tell Harry was feeling it too because he was squirming in his seat. That exam couldn’t end soon enough.   
History of Magic was fun and familiar. Kaylee used the same style of tests from her time teaching me. Everything that had been on the study guide was on her test. There was a list of names and we had to choose four of them, giving what the person was, when they did it, where it happened and why it was significant. She also had ten questions of multiple choice. When we talked to the twins later, they grinned about the class because it was about more than goblin uprisings and troll wars.   
……   
With the exams over, everyone was feeling confident; even Neville. All there was left of the term was exam results, the inter-house Quidditch cup and the end of term feast. Felt weird for the year to be over, even weirder when I realized I hadn’t spent most of the year country hopping. I’d gotten to stay in one place with children my own age and made friends. Fraser wasn’t there to berate me or force me to run for miles while he drank and Rikki kept me hydrated and alive.   
I knew who my parents were, I knew their names. Granted I didn’t like some of what I’d learned about them but they were where I came from. I had family, actual blood related family. This year had changed everything for me. I felt older, wiser and more powerful and out of shape of all things.   
….  
Harry, Hermione and Ron had decided to go down to one of the trees by the lake that had become popular with us once the season had started turning warmer. They wanted the fresh air and the bit of freedom being outside brought. Neville was back at the dorm writing his Gran about how well he thought he’d done in his exams.   
I’d been on my way down to join them when I almost literally ran into McGonagall by the front entrance. No idea where she was heading but she kept me on my feet as I’d dodged her coming around the corner. The older witch righted me and grinned.   
“Somewhere in a hurry, Athena?” she asked tugging on a lank of black hair “gracious, your hair has gotten so long since Christmas.”  
I chuckled “yea, I was going to ask Aunt Andy for a haircut this summer. I liked having it short,” I mused “as for where I was going, I’m supposed to join Hermione and the others down at the lake. Hermione is probably feeding the Giant Squid toast at the moment.”  
“He likes the plumb jam the best,” McGonagall whispered and asked normally “any plans for the summer?”  
Shrugging I said “not sure, I know that there’s a tons more lessons about being an heir. Aunt Andy wanted to get into Grimmauld Place, something about that being our seat. I’m pretty sure that Aunt Cissy wanted me to go to Gringotts and learn about the financial accounts,” I frowned “just thinking about that last one makes my head hurt,” McGonagall chuckled at that “beyond that, I’m not sure.”  
“Do you think your aunt would let me barrow you for a week or two, I want to show you the highlands,” McGonagall spoke softly, her green eyes so like mine flashed excitedly “show you where you were born, Castletown in Caithness. The very top of Scotland.”  
My eyes went wide in shock “I’m Scottish? Like a native citizen of Scotland?”  
McGonagall laughed and nodded “aye, born November 5th 1979, at three ten in the morning. Very eager to join our world.”  
My response was interrupted when the golden trio suddenly appeared, Angie was right it was easier to call them by the nick name and not by name name. Harry looked a bit out of breath and worried, that was never good. Ron always looked out of breath and Hermione looked like she was mentally working on a puzzle.   
“Professor McGonagall, we need to talk to Professor Dumbledore!” Harry cried lowly when he finally had the breath “Professor Snape is going to steal the Philosopher’s Stone!”  
“What?!” McGonagall looked taken aback, she couldn’t believe the words that had just come out of Harry’s mouth “Miss Potter, what is going on?”  
“Hagrid got the dragon egg from a man at the Hog’s Head pub, the man was asking all manner of questions about Fluffy,” Harry rambled in explanation “Hagrid told him about how to deal with Fluffy, how to put him to sleep! Snape’s going after the stone tonight to get it for Voldemort!”  
I blinked at him “Harry, I believe you but that sounded like crazy talk! You want to try again?”   
Harry shook his head “it makes sense that Snape…”  
“Or Quirrel!” I countered   
The intrusion didn’t bother Harry “that he’d go after the stone now that he knows how to get passed the three headed dog! We got to tell Professor Dumbledore!”  
McGonagall straightened up to her full height, which was considerable “Mr. Potter, it would not look kindly that you are accusing a member of staff of trying to steal from the school. I can assure you that Severus Snape has no intentions of stealing that stone, which you shouldn’t even know about, he’s protecting it!” she growled “furthermore, I will relay your concerns once Professor Dumbledore returns from London where he will be for the rest of the day!”  
“What about Quirrell?” I asked “bet it’s a troll if he is in on it.”  
McGonagall looked at me dumbfounded and sputtered “that…that is neither here nor there, young lady!”   
“Oh, so you don’t believe it about Snape but you do about Quirrell, and I’m right about the troll, aren’t I?” I asked pointedly   
The older witch huffed and folded her arms across her chest “you all need to return to your dormitory at once. I’m sure Mr. Potter would like to prepare for the Inter-House cup that’s coming up, I want that cup Mr. Potter.”  
With that she walked away hurriedly. Harry scowled deeply that his warning wasn’t taken seriously. Blinded by the Snape. If he just would have left a name out, she probably would have taken it more seriously. I followed them up to the dorm and listened to both Harry and Ron ranting about the situation.   
I wanted to point out what I thought they’d done wrong but didn’t and instead left them to their rambles by going up my dorm room. Jubilee had decided to clean out my trunk. To get rid of the rubbish school papers and whatnot and pack away my books and bag. All that was left out was my clothing, animal paraphernalia and bedding. Actually, I think Jubilee did that for everyone who was finished with exams; she got bored.   
When Hermione arrived up stairs she looked determined. That made me a little worried, well…a lot worried. The only time Hermione had that look was when she had decided to do something. Like get Nym back for the pool incident by putting a whole cup of ice water down the back of Nym’s shirt two days later. Or when Hermione was so determined that I was going to know about ‘The Hobbit’ that she read it out loud to me during our sleepovers the pervious summer.   
“What are you planning?” I asked turning off my radio and pushing away Robert’s book that I was reading again “I can see your devious mind in play, Miss Granger.”  
Hermione frowned and tilted her head at me “I’m trying to figure out how we spend time with Harry this summer.”  
That was a bit weak but considering what he’d said about his relatives I could buy it “I was worried it was world domination you were plotting or if Nym deserved another ice bath.”  
The bushy haired girl chuckled “she probably does.”   
…..  
My intuition was buzzing annoyingly the rest of the day and it was driving me crazy. Something was off and I had no idea what the hell it was! It was making me restless. Couldn’t even finish everything I’d put on my plate at dinner. Not even a hot shower did a lot to ease the strain I was feeling.   
I even tossed and turned that night after having gone to bed early. It was nearly midnight when I sat up in bed, weary and thirsty. Flinging the curtain to the four poster bed back I let my socked feet find my shoes, the floors were cold. I was wearing sleeping pants and a long sleeved shirt like I normally did. To get something to drink I headed down to the common room and would call for Jubilee so as not to be rude to the rest of the sleeping room, I shoved my wand in my pocket because it had become habit.   
Sleepily I trudged down the stairs and was headed for my favorite chair by the fire when I damn near tripped over something. Holy shite, it was Neville that I’d stumbled over! He wasn’t moving except for breathing and he was stiff as a board. The boy was able to whimper but I had no idea what to do. Tears burned at my eyes because I had no idea how to help him. I was completely useless!   
“Fuck!” I swore through my tears and sprinted back towards the dorms.  
Hermione wasn’t in her bed. It looked like she’d at least been there but she wasn’t there now. I swore again and took off for the older girls dorms. Angie wasn’t happy that I was shaking her awake and she threatened to hex me before she saw my tears and heard the tone of my voice; worried and scared. She quickly followed when I told her that something was wrong with Neville and that he was in the common room.   
Angie took one look at him and whispered “finite incantatem!” with her wand pointed to him “there we go,” we helped Neville to be sitting up when the spell that was on him lifted and he sat up gasping for breath “you’re going to be fine, somebody hit you with a body bind curse. Finite usually works but I didn’t know how powerful the curse was.”  
“It was Hermione,” Neville confessed once he had enough air do it “she cursed me!”  
“What?” Angie and I demanded at the same time   
Neville took a few more gulps of air “she, Harry and Ron left to go after the stone.”  
My concern turned to pure rage “those fucking twits!” I growled “I’m gonna kill them if that three headed dog doesn’t.”  
I was out the door and running for that third floor corridor before Angie could stop me or even get an answer for what happened. There was only one thing on my brain and that was getting to the so-gonna-be-dead-when-I-get-my-hands-on-them-golden-trio. I wouldn’t have cared if Filch had caught me right then because I would have hexed him with one of those spells that was in Robert’s book, to hell with the consequences.   
The torches lining the third floor corridor were still lit when I got there. I took a couple seconds outside the door that was slightly ajar to collect myself, catch my breath and pray that I remembered how to sing once I was on the other side of that door. Slowly, once I was breathing normally, I opened the door and found Fluffy (damn he was huge) snoring away next to an open trapdoor.   
Three steps, slide, fall through the door. That was my plan as I eyed the sleeping monster and the trap door. I drew my wand, precautionary measures and then ran because my life depended upon it. It turned out to be four steps, slide and fall through the door and continue falling through something squish that broke my fall a little.   
Still hit the floor below hard enough to make me winch. It was dark down here so I cast a lumos and about died when I saw that it was a plant above me that wasn’t reacting to kindly to the wand light. It was Devil’s Snare, I whimpered at that realization. Hermione was the one who cast the spell that hurt the plant enough that I just fell through, the boys wouldn’t have remembered that light hurt them. I was as sure of that as I was that Sprout put this damn plant here.   
That meant that it was more than Hagrid and Snape protecting the damn stone. I had to be careful now because I was by myself and didn’t have Hermione here to act as a second brain. Cautiously but speedily I moved on and found a classroom filled with flying keys and a floating broom. I tried the door but found it locked and several keys impaled in the wood.   
Seeing those made me think, they’d have been chasing something in order to get impaled like that. Looking up at the still flying keys I saw one with a bent wing but it was too high for me to jump. To the broom then, I wasn’t expecting the keys to attack the second I was on the broom.   
The jagged edges of the keys tore through my clothes and my skin as I chased that bent winged key down. I caught the key quickly and was swearing venomously I managed to not crash into the door as I landed next to it, fighting to unlock the door and get through it. The charm on the keys ended on the other side of the door.   
Now I found myself standing at the edge of a giant chess board, this had Grams written all over because the woman loved wizarding chest. It was here that I found Ron and Hermione. Ron was unconscious on the ground in the middle of the board and Hermione had conquered her Bluebell Flame to keep them warm. A quick scan of the room did not provide a gangly boy with messy black hair named Harry Potter.   
“What the hell were you thinking?” I screamed making Hermione jump from where she was sitting next to Ron, she looked wide eyed at me as I marched towards her “why the bloody hell didn’t you tell me about this?!”  
“You…you would have st-stoped us!” Hermione stuttered   
I blinked at her “you’re bloody fucking right I would of, what part of being first years doesn’t anybody understand? Was not that cock up with Binns enough of a lesson?”  
Hermione’s eyes watered as I yelled “we just wanted to protect the stone from Snape and Voldemort!”  
“Fuck Snape,” I shouted “you do realize that grown wizards have fallen to Voldemort what the fuck makes three first years so damned special? Where the hell is Harry?”   
Hermione wiped at her cheeks and pointed to the open door beyond “he went on…” she started but never finished because I was moving again, my wand in my hand once more “there’s a dead troll!” she cried after me there was something else but I didn’t understand.   
She was right, there was a dead troll. A very dead troll that had no head and there was blood everywhere. I slipped in it as I sprinted past, almost fell and about twisted my ankle. That would have sucked to have been covered in troll blood but I kept my feet and kept running.   
Past that was a room with flames burning at an archway and a table with vials on it. I didn’t have time for this shit. Hoping this would work, I conjured my verison the Bluebell Flames and used it to smother the other enchanted flames. To redirect the heat so that I could jump over it, if it didn’t work I was going to be extra crispy.   
Thank all the divines it worked and I cleared the purple and orange flames. Once I was over them the original flamed burned hotter and destroy my flames. I found Harry at the bottom of the stairs, he was stuck in place facing a mirror and Quirrel…so fucking called that! There was something wrong with Quirrell though.   
He was unwrapping the turban he always wore. Wow…he had another’s bloke’s face on the back of his head. Yea, that’s probably enough of that freak show. I jumped down the last of the steps and cast a knock back jinx on the Frankenstein’s monster of a professor. The spell hit him in the back and shoved him forward and through the mirror in front of him. The mirror shattered and Quirrel screamed, couldn’t tell if it was in rage or pain as I pulled Harry behind one of the nearby pillars.   
“I am so killing you when this is over!” I hissed at him before peaking around the corner to see a bloodied Quirrell careful extract himself from the sharp glass “what’s the situation?”  
“You were right,” Harry said meekly, he now had his wand in his hand “it was Quirrell but Quirrell has Voldemort on the back of his head, possessing him.”  
“Eww…personal space much?” I asked and Harry rolled his eyes at me “right, game plan. Swish and flick?” I asked   
“Swish and flick, what?” Harry demanded   
I looked back to the DADA Professor, he was out of the glass but was searching it for something…weird “the glass, swish and flick, its Voldemort so I don’t think he’s going to cast tickling charms,” I looked back to Harry “stay here, I have a plan…sort of, I’m going to be myself.”  
“What?” Harry demanded as I sprinted for the pillar across from us  
I gulped as I put my back to the stone column. Leaning out, I asked fumos and watched the dark smoke move towards the professor before I shouted out “hey, Quirrell! Your village called, they want their idiot back!”   
“What?” Quirrell demanded and stood to find himself in the cloud of smoke “what is this?”  
“Hey, Quirrell!” I shouted again “didn’t ya momma ever tell you smoking is bad for you?”  
“Black?” Quirrell called questioningly   
I laughed, making it echo through the room “hey, you do know your colors, I was beginning to worry!”  
Another voice echoed through the room “the girl is nothing, find the stone!”  
“Poor little Quirrell,” I sang out “stubbed his toe, can’t find a stone and cried like a baby!” I laughed and called “hey, Stutters, if that stone was up your ass you’d know to find where to find it!”   
“Shut it, you insolent child!” Quirrell screamed   
“Ha!” I cried “who’s gonna make me?” I demanded “poor little Quirrell or that pitiful excuse of a Dark Ass-hat on your head,” I taunted “ha! He really is an ass-hat! Oi, what does that make you, Stutters? What, huh? Did momma and poppa not play you enough as a child, huh Stutters or did she think you were a squib?”  
Quirrell growled and left the mirror, straining to look through the smoke “you’re going to pay for that, child!”  
“Oh, I’m so scared, look at me I’m shaking in my boots!” I called back “but alas, boys, I can’t today, forgot my coin purse in my room. Rain check good with you?”   
Through the dissipating smoke Harry and I could see Quirrell stumble his way down off the dais were the mirror had stood, he was looking for where I was hiding. Harry glanced to me and I nodded, pointing my wand…swish and flick with proper enunciation. Just like in the forest, the glass behind Quirrell rose up like the rocks had but these were more dangerous.   
Fraser once said that killing someone who’s trying to kill you isn’t that hard. It’s the aftermath that’s difficult. He also said commit to it because you most likely won’t get a second chance. Fun how his advice kept popping in my head today. With gritted teeth, I committed myself to what was about to happen and jerked my wand towards me. Harry copied the motion.   
The long shards of lethal glass sliced through the air silently and Quirrell grunted when the glass impaled itself into his back. He fell to his knees with the two shards partially sticking out of his chest. Blood dribbled down his open lips and he looked down in disbelief.   
Harry and I moved out from behind the pillars. Quirrell looked up at us and let out a little chuckle before he exploded in a cloud of dust. What? He exploded! What the hell! Not again! My brain was trying to catch up as I picked myself up off the floor, my body aching and sore at this point (I was starting to feel those cuts and the run from Gryffindor tower I’d been ignoring), the only thing left of the man was a shoe across the room.   
I helped Harry up in time to watch in horror as the dust started to swirl and twirl. A mini-tornado grew from the spot where Quirrell had been with the same face forming in the cloud that had been on the back of Quirrell’s head. It screamed and shot towards us. Harry shoved me to the side and took the full force of the wraith passing through him.   
“NO!” I cried as Harry screamed and fell backwards onto the dusty floor “HARRY!”  
My hands tremble as I scrambled across the floor to Harry. I put a hand to his chest, he was still breathing; THANK YOU DIVINES! Sitting down beside him, I couldn’t stop the tears that came as my wand clattered to the floor by my side. I cried for so many reasons, the biggest at the moment was that I thought for a second I had thought I’d lost one of my best friends. The second reason was for the fact that we’d just made another teacher explode.


	16. The Twilight

Chapter Sixteen: The Twilight

I had run out of tears by the time that Albus –lots of names- Dumbledore and McGonagall arrived, still sitting on the floor next to Harry watching his chest rise and fall; I was rocking back and forth. My knees were hugged to my chest and my wand was on the floor beside me. I didn’t move or look away from Harry when the two professors called my name, nor when McGonagall touched my shoulder.   
The Scotswoman grabbed my chin and made me look at her “Athena, say something!”  
I gulped and said emotionlessly “Professor Quirrell had Voldemort stuck to the back of his head and he exploded when he died,” a single tear formed and rolled down my left cheek “Harry took the wraith of Voldemort when he shoved me out of the way and now he won’t wake up,” I struggled to breathe, rocking harder and the tears returned “why won’t he wake up?”  
“Shush, mo leanbh,” McGonagall pulled me into her arms so that I was sitting on her lap and let me sob into her chest while she said “it’ll be alright mo leòmhann beag, it’s gonna be alright. I swear to you tis, shush.”  
I was vaguely aware of Dumbledore kneeling beside Harry before I cried myself to sleep. In my dreams replayed the whole of Quirrell’s death in slow motion. I could feel the cold of the pillar I as was leaning against it, the carvings of the mounted knights on the handle of my wand pressing in my skin as I tightened my grip on the foci. Sweat trickled down my body, dripping down my cheeks and down the small of my back.   
My breathing was steady as I shouted the taunts despite how my heart raced. The shards of mirror rising up behind the oblivious DADA professor, I could see the torch light around us glinting off them through the thinning smoke. Quirrell stumbling his way down the stairs, his eyes scanning for where I was hiding.   
I was aware of this dream, of what was coming next and I tried to pull away, tried to make myself lower my wand but I was locked into fate as it enacted itself out again. In my head I was repeating one word over and over again ‘no’, it was making my stomach twist. I could feel the wetness of tears on my cheeks but I hadn’t cried the last time.   
There were screams as I jerked my wand towards me, yanking my shard of death towards the back of an already dead man. In absolute horror of what I had done, I watched Quirrell’s face as the glass pierced him. His eyes went wide in surprise first and then the pain registered and his pale blue eyes squeezed shut. I couldn’t breathe as his knees gave out and he sank down to the unstable joints. My whole body was frozen and cold when his eyes opened again, his breathes coming in wheezes and bright red blood trickled over pale lips.   
His eyes glinted in amusement as if he knew something that I didn’t and his bloodied lips seemed to take forever to turn up in a bright red smirk. This gaze was held for what seemed like a life time before he just exploded with such force that I was flung backwards. The granules of dust he became cut into my skin where it was unprotected, scraping at me like sandpaper does to wood.   
I woke as my back slammed painfully into the freezing stone of the floor of the mirror chamber. There were hands on my shoulders, shaking me, and in my panic I thought it was Quirrell. That my nightmare and the events of what had happened under Fluffy’s room did not coincide. I fought back because I so desperately needed to get away from Quirrell; I’d failed and he and Voldemort were there to end me.   
My body acted while my mind reeled, scrambling away from the hands. I came off the opposite side of the bed and landed on the stone floor with a rather painful thud. My mouth was moving and I could hear myself screaming for Quirrell to leave me alone, not to touch me as my back connected with the wooden side table that was between the infirmary beds.   
Strong hands grasped my face and held me in place, a familiar voice called my name, then screaming my name. It was enough to cut through the haze of the lingering nightmare. Blinking thrice, I struggled to draw breath as I looked into emerald eyes so like mine. Lose black hair framed a pale face with strong and chiseled features. I knew that face but for a very long moment I couldn’t give a name to her.   
Grasping for the wrists of the hands that held my face, I started to panic for a whole other reason “I can’t…” all I could draw in to my lungs were wheezes “I can’t breathe!”  
The woman grabbed my hand and put it to her chest before putting hers to mine “breathe with me, Athena,” she commanded and I obeyed automatically. She drew in a long slow breath and I followed in wheezing fashion “tis it,” the familiar woman smiled, letting the breath out for me to copy “and again,” slowly air was taken in and slowly that air was released, the panic that filled me dissipated and I remembered. She was my grandmother, Minerva McGonagall and I had been named after her “you’re doing just fine, lass.”  
With the panic leaving, I could feel myself trembling as if I was freezing “we killed Quirrell,” I whimpered pitifully “why’d we do that? There could have been another way!” I shouted at her “why’d I do that?” her image blurred as the tears returned “it was my idea, swish and flick, that’s what I told Harry to do! Swish and FLICK! It wasn’t our responsibility to protect a stone! Why wasn’t it with Flamel? Why was it here in a school with children if a madman was after it? A madman who already proved he was willing to murder children! WHY?” I screamed, the force of it made my throat hurt.   
McGonagall’s green eyes watered as Madam Pompfrey knelt next to her, whispered something in her ear and handed her a potion vial. The Scottish witch nodded, letting go of me to pull the cork on the vial “Athena, I need you to drink these. I promise that everything is going to be alright,” I eyed the vial in her hand with suspicion before looking back up at her with a defiant look on my face, my jaw set “please,” the older woman begged “it’ll help.”  
I blinked and nodded, taking it from her when she held it out; drinking it down in one big gulp “eww…” I shuddered “that was disgusting. Whoa…” I felt a little wave of dizziness sweep over me and I could actually feel my heart rate starting to slow down to its resting pace. I felt calm and everything I was feeling wasn’t as sharp “what was that?”  
“Calming draught, Miss Black,” Madam Pompfrey said as she helped McGonagall to get me up off the floor “I almost thought a sleeping spell would be needed…”  
“No!” I cried softly, the draught I’d just taken made my protest sound not as demanding and forceful as it would have been “please don’t make me sleep again.”  
McGonagall and Pompfrey shared a knowing look as I sat down on my bed. I was finally able to take stock of myself and my surroundings. The various cuts that littered my body had been healed, there was a familiar tightness to my skin that informed me of this and…also the pain was gone. I’d been changed into the standard infirmary pjs, striped cotton tops and bottoms.   
There was a curtained off bed across the aisle from mine and the rest of the place seemed to be empty. Outside, from what I could tell, the sun was out and my internal clock said that it was around noon. Not sure what day it was or how long I’d been sleeping.   
“What happened in the mirror chamber?” McGonagall asked sitting down beside me “Miss Granger told us what happened on Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley and her trip down to at least Professor Snape’s puzzle. She helped Mr. Potter through and then went back to watch over Mr. Weasley,” McGonagall explained “she was very adamant that you were not with them.”  
I chuckled darkly “no, because they thought I was going to talk them out of it and I would have,” wow…the calming draught was really working, I’m sure without it there would have been a lot worse words used “I found Neville in the common room, thought he was dead and I had no idea what to do. When I noticed he was breathing I went and woke up Angie. She undid the body bind curse that Hermione used on Neville. I didn’t even give a second thought to going after them when Neville gasped out who’d cursed them and where they’d gone.”  
The Head of Gryffindor nodded “Mr. Longbottom and Miss Johnson say something to the same effect.”  
Not looking at the older witch helped as I relayed what had happened. How I’d slipped by the three headed mongrel, the fiendish fauna and the soaring keys. I told her what I had roared at Hermione, how I’d made the girl cry because I was so furious at her that I didn’t care if I hurt her or not.   
It was only because of the calming draught that I was about to talk about what happened in the chamber. How I’d sent Quirrell crashing through the mirror just as he was finishing showing off the face on the back of his head. Harry telling me that it was Voldemort’s face and that the wraith of the madman had been possessing Quirrell.   
That monotonous voice came then as I told of the idea that came and the reasoning that Voldemort wasn’t going to let us live; we had to fight back the same. I described the need to get Quirrell away from his search of the mirror for the stone so I’d taunted him to draw him away into the smoke screen. Then I basically gave voice to the nightmare I’d had. How it all felt and then Quirrell went boom; exploding into dust.   
McGonagall raised an eyebrow at this “are you sure it was dust, lass?”  
I nodded “yep, because that’s what Voldemort’s wraith swirled out of and tried to pass through me and Harry but Harry pushed me away and took the whole blow himself,” I paused then, felt bad this thought hadn’t occurred to me earlier “is…is Harry okay?”  
The woman nodded “he is but he’s still sleeping at the moment,” she smiled reassuringly at me “his body just needed a little longer than yours to recover from the altercation.”  
I nodded and swallowed hard “what about Hermione and Ronald?”  
That reassuring smile was still there “they were already released and sent back to their dorms. Just a few cuts and scrapes, nothing that Madam Pompfrey couldn’t fix.”   
Nodded again I felt relief that the two idiots were okay “when can I get out of here?” I asked “I’m starving and these pjs are itchy.”   
McGonagall chuckled “that’s up to Madam Pompfrey but there is nothing wrong with you; all your wounds are healed. You just decided to sleep longer than the others; you even slept through Mr. Weasley’s rather loud rendition of his chess match.”  
….  
I was let go once Jubilee had brought me clean clothes and a sandwich because I’d just missed lunch. McGonagall escorted me back to Gryffindor tower, where we found Oliver Wood tossing books, pillows and whatever else he could get his hands on whilst ranting about stupid first year seekers. Both McGonagall and I raised an eyebrow at this, the boy hadn’t even noticed McGonagall’s presence.  
“How long has this been going on?” McGonagall asked Angie once the girl was finished hugging me (aka strangling me with her shoulder), I got hugs from the twins as well. Angie and the twins had been near the door for a quick exit if needed.  
“Since Hermione told us that Harry was still sleeping and that Pompfrey said she didn’t know when he’d wake up, might take days.” Fred watched the Quidditch captain’s tantrum   
Angie was looking at me then she grinned and snapped her fingers, I blinked confusedly when she did this and when she picked up one of the pillows that Wood had chucked and threw it at the boy’s head. Oliver growled when the pillow smacked him up side the face and whirled to the side to face the girl.  
“What?” he growled dangerously, his stance nor demeanor changed when he saw McGonagall  
Angie sighed “I think I have a solution to the problem you’re having, Wood.”  
Wood’s eyes narrowed and we were all now staring at the chaser “what would that be? Got some potion that will wake Harry up by tomorrow?”  
Angie shook her head “the problem we’re having is that we don’t have any other real seeker in Gryffindor besides Harry, at least until now,” Angie grinned at her own brilliance “we can use Athena.”  
“What?” Wood and I cried at the same time, the older boy yelled over my protests “but she’s not even trained, nor does she have the proper kit nor a broom! I’m not even sure if we could get her on the team!”  
I picked up where he left off “besides, that’s Harry’s spot and I’ve just gotten out of the infirmary, why would I want to?”  
Angie grabbed me by the shoulders and looked me square in the eyes “I’ve seen you chase a snitch, little lion, and you were doing rather well. If Harry doesn’t wake up by tomorrow we might as well forfeit.”   
I grabbed her shoulders in the same dramatic fashion “I had a very bad night last night, a very, very bad night. What if I don’t feel up to it? What if I don’t want to anyways?” I asked seriously “like Wood said, I have neither gear nor broom. The kid who lives this games doesn’t even know if switching places with Harry is even allowed.”  
McGonagall gave out a piercing whistle and brought everyone’s attention to her “firstly, Mr. Wood, you will be picking up the mess you made of my common room,” she gave him a stern enough look that he visibly gulped “secondly, I do like Miss Johnson’s suggestion but I will have to take it up with Professor Dumbledore. If he agrees and if Mr. Potter has not woken in time to play, I will take care of the gear and broom problem,” she held up a hand to stop Wood from speaking “this all rests on Professor Dumbledore and Miss Black agreeing to the proposition.”  
“I’ll do it!” Ron shouted suddenly from the bottom of the boys’ dorm stairs.   
The twins cried at the same time “no!” Fred shook his head “we’ve seen you fly, little brother, and no offense but you’d make a better keeper than seeker.”  
“Why is there not one of the older students volunteering for this?” I asked letting Angie’s shoulders go “someone who tried out for the position?”  
“They don’t want to make fools of themselves incase Dumbledore says yes, it is the final after all,” George sniggered lowly.  
I huffed “I’m going to go lie down, I think I’m still lost in dream. Maybe taking a nap will wake me up.”  
From behind me as I made my way towards the girls’ dorm stairs, I could hear Angie and the twins chuckling at my comment. McGonagall didn’t find it as funny and shushed them. I ignored the glare that Ronald gave me as I passed him and took the stairs two at a time to get to my dorm room.   
I ignored everybody that was in there and happily face planted wearily in my bed. The blanket that Aunt Andy had gave me was soft against my cheek and smelled like it had been freshly laundered. I felt so exhausted that I just started to doze off when I felt the bed dip down beside me.   
Thinking it was Angie, I whined a bit “come on, Angie, I don’t want to fly tomorrow!”  
“I’ll make sure Angie knows that,” Hermione giggled slightly, she was lying next to me, facing me when my eyes popped open “are you alright?” she asked, the laughter gone.   
I shrugged “meh…I’ve been better.”   
Hermione nodded “McGonagall said that you weren’t too badly hurt. What…what happened down there? I heard a big bang.”  
“That would have been Quirrel exploding after Harry and I put large shards of glass in his back,” I shrugged nonchalantly, my tone still affected by the calming draught “had a nightmare about that.”  
Hermione frowned “I am so very sorry…”  
I reached out and put a finger to her lips “nah, not right now. You lied directly to me when I asked what you were plotting and then you attacked Neville when he tried to stop you. If he had any lung problems that could have killed him,” Hermione whimpered at the thought “they say the road to hell is paved with good intentions. I need to take a step back from this friendship, Hermione,” she grasped my hand that was touching her and shook her head “I understand that you want friends. I know what it’s like to be alone. I know what it is like not to have friends.”  
“We were just…what if Voldemort would have gotten the stone and came back?” Hermione asked   
“Then people like Nym, Mad-Eye Moody, Madam Bones and the Auroras would deal with him and his,” I told her, trying to make her listen to what I was saying “we are children…maybe not as innocent as we once were but we are still children. For now, that fight with Voldemort isn’t ours no matter what he’s done to our families.”  
“But McGonagall wouldn’t listen!” Hermione sat up, frustrated tears rolling down her cheeks “what were we supposed to do?”  
I sat up as well “been smarter,” I stated flatly “how many times did I say that you were too fixated on Snape. I gave you, of all people, reasonable doubt about the bat of a man. That’s what Fraser taught me, to suspect everyone and that everybody has a reason for everything they do,” I smirked then “for all I hate that man, he taught me some of the greatest lessons and kept me alive so far.”  
Hermione’s shoulders slumped as Tiberius climbed up on the bed and crawled into her lap purring “I…I…”  
She struggled to speak and I could only imagine what she was feeling; I feel like I had to say something to make it better “remember when you told us not to mess with Binns?” I asked and she nodded “and I told you that I knew what we were doing. Thinking that I had destroy his soul, just for the little amount of time that I thought that, impacted me deeply. It made me rethink everything I thought I knew. Like how smart I actually was,” I sighed then “when it was just me and Kaylee learning together, it was easy to believe what she was telling me. That I was so smart that I forgot some of her other lessons in humility.”  
Hermione snorted and nodded “Professor Parmenter did tell me after her first test ‘that just because you know something doesn’t mean you have to shout it from the rafters or write extra-long on the essay’.”  
I chuckled and nodded “yea, she used to tell me that all the time, all the time. I think that we have to keep that in mind, Hermione, because we are different than muggles, because we are different from the other kids in our school,” I struggled to put what I was thinking into words, what exactly I wanted to say “we need…I think we have to be more than our house because of how we think.”  
Hermione looked over at me and raised an eyebrow “what do you mean.”  
“I think that you could have been in Ravenclaw, easy,” I explained “so could have I but the talking cage liner decided to put us here. We can be both brawn and brains; not just one or the other.”  
The bushy haired girl opened her mouth to speak but closed it just as quickly. She hummed thoughtful as she got up and went to sit on her own bed still holding the shadow cat (I’ve given up on reading the book about him because I’m not sure where the book got to). I let her go, I was being serious that I needed to think about my friendship with her. It is possible to be too attached to someone and it’s just one way; literature is full of stories like that.   
….  
Hermione woke me for dinner, I hadn’t even realized that I’d fallen asleep. I wasn’t sure that I remembered laying back down. Oh, well…I stopped by the girl’s bathroom to wash my face before I went on down. Hermione had gone on ahead with Ron, at least that’s what she told me she was going to do before she left the dorm room.   
Neville was waiting for me in the common room when I finally made it down. I was so happy to see him and know that he really was okay. As we were walking down to the Great Hall he asked me what had happened. With that calming draught now totally worn off, I just gave him the rough outline. Neville was showing what kind of a man he was going to be when he didn’t press for details once I mentioned Quirrell and boom in the same sentence. I was also not wanting to talk about it anymore; I was so very sick of the words boom and explosion.   
Angie pulled me down to sit next to her and Neville took the empty spot by my side, Angie was beaming “you just missed McGonagall,” she was excited about that and that made me concerned “she told Wood that Dumbledore gave the go ahead on switching you in for Harry. Of course that means that Harry will have to try out again next year but Dumbledore also agreed to Wood’s idea of creating a reserve team like the professionals have.”  
“Why didn’t Hogwarts not have those to begin with?” Neville asked blinking in confusion   
Angie just shrugged “maybe there wasn’t enough people involved to do that or they just didn’t think of it, hard to say but I was told by Wood that he wants you down at the Quidditch pitch this evening, just to see how you fly.”  
“Like a rock,” I smirked unhappily, I really didn’t want to play Quidditch right now “straight to the ground.”  
Angie pinched my cheek “you’re so funny!” she smirked humorlessly  
…..  
There was nothing I could say that could dissuade the seeker-less Gryffindor Quidditch team from their idea of using me in their game. I tried, I really, really, really, really did. The twins just rolled their eyes and picked me up, George had his arms under my arms and Fred was carrying my feet, and they carried me down to the pitch with the three chasers and Neville following.   
Waiting in the stands was Professor Flitwick and his Ravenclaw team, McGonagall, Dumbledore and Madam Hooch. It wasn’t only Wood who wanted to see me fly, make sure I wasn’t being tossed to the sharks or that’s what I was assuming. I was about to being my protest again when Wood present me with my actual broom and a newer pair of goggles (the lens weren’t scratched and the elastic band wasn’t stretched).   
“Just catch the snitch,” Wood said as I shucked my school robe “and bring it back.”  
I raised an eyebrow at him “what else am I going to do with it? Invite it to tea before classical piano lessons?”   
“Go!” Angie shouted before Wood could retort, she threw the snitch in the air and I went after it.   
The little golden ball must have had the same setting as the last time I played with it because it led me on a merry chase. Around the bottom of the pitch and up through the lowest hoop on the south side of the pitch. Lost it there for a moment and found it streaking towards the other hoops.   
I was almost to it when the thing dove and fainted to the left before going to the right where I caught it in a side swooping dive. The snitch hummed before the wings folded up into this body and the ball could have been a ping pong ball for how normal it seemed then. Lazily I headed back to Wood and the rest of his team.   
“Can I go now?” I asked pushing the goggles up onto my forehead, landing before giving a sputtering Wood the snitch “seriously, can I?”  
“That was set to semi-pro!” he cried looking at the ball in his hand “I used that setting to test Harry!”  
I frowned at him “would you like a biscuit for knowing that? Oi!” I cried out as Wood suddenly hugged me, I think he was crying happily “HEY!”  
Fred and George saved me by pulling Wood away as those who’d been in the stands came to join us, had they not been there I would have kicked Wood in the shin. Dumbledore just smiled at me, patted me on the shoulder and congratulated me on my new position; then he left. The Ravenclaw team just nodded their heads towards us and headed back for the castle. Flitwick did much the same as Dumbledore did but he just shook my hand and hurried after his students.  
McGonagall smiled and took a tiny duffle back from the inner pocket of her robe, holding it by its tinny tiny strap with one hand she tapped it with her wand and returned it to its original size. On the side was the numbering 07, Harry wore the number 7 so I guess my number indicated I was a substitute player. Angie took the bag from the transfiguration’s professor and slung it over her shoulders, grinning broadly.  
“That has your gear in it,” McGonagall seemed amused by Angie’s actions, but her eyes were on me “everything you’ll need, Athena. Have a good night.”  
I frowned at McGonagall’s retreating back as she headed towards the castle, Angie poked me in the side and asked “why does she call you by your first name and everyone else by their last?”  
I growled softly, upset with the Head of House “because she’s my grandmother,” I huffed and started to leave the pitch, heading towards where Hermione was watching from the edge of the stadium.  
“CALLED IT!!” Fred shouted as he jumped up and clicked his heels together “I WIN THE POOL, YOU ALL OWE ME GOLD!”  
There was a betting pool going on that? I frowned as I leaned into the side of the locker room next to Hermione and we watched Fred’s strange victory dance. Hermione was giggling at the Quidditch players antics as the three chasers started to chase after the lone beater to stop his victory shouting and dancing.   
“I really hope that Harry wakes up tonight and can play tomorrow,” I confessed to Hermione “it doesn’t feel right getting to play like this, coming in to step all over Harry’s hard work.”  
Hermione just nudged my shoulder with hers “Harry would be happy that someone’s there to take his place and to make sure the team had a fighting chance.”   
I sighed heavily and looked over at…my friend? She looked a bit better rested and there was more color in her cheeks. The bushy haired bookworm was still watching the players on the field with an easy smile on her face. I felt a pang of loneliness and loss. Neville maybe my male best friend but the loss of my female best friend hurt and I had the feeling it always would.


	17. And the House Cup goes to…

Chapter Seventeen: And the House Cup goes to…  
I will never criticize Harry about not eating before a Quidditch match ever again because I all could do at breakfast was to push my food around my plate. Last night had been bad. I’d gotten to bed late because Wood insisted he go over the playbook with me until my eyes started to blur. I did kick him in the shin and growled dangerously at him when the Quidditch Captain tried to stop me from heading up to my dorm room.   
Sleep had come quickly but did not stay. Quirrell’s nightmare plagued me again until I gave up and went for an early morning run around the castle to clear my head, the first one I’d taken all year. I was going to have to get back in the practice of running, my muscles remembered the actions but my body was lacking the fitness it had when I had been living with Fraser.   
There was still time for a two hour nap when I returned. That was nice for I did not dream or at least I don’t think I did before Angie and Hermione were shaking me awake. I was to shower, dress in my new Quidditch robes and equipment, then get myself downstairs for breakfast.   
Thus, I was currently and aggressively prodding hash browns around on my plate. Angie had tried to give me oatmeal but the stuff’s gross without flavoring and loads strawberries in it; Jubilee hadn’t been putting fruit out now that it was getting close to the end of the year.   
“My boots are rubbing my heels and it hurts.” I muttered unhappily   
Wood, who was sitting across from me, drew his wand “right,” he nodded with smile and leaned back so he could aim at my feet. I have no idea what spell he used but the boots suddenly fit better and the pressure on my heels vanished “sometimes players like to break their boots in the muggle way but there is a charm on the boots to make them supple and broken in for your feet. Just have to remember to activate them.”  
“Thanks.” I said darkly and went back to attacking the fried potatoes.   
Angie took my plate away then “I think that’s enough savagery, little lion, save it for the game and eat this,” she handed me an apple “or else I tell your grandmother.”   
The dark skinned girl just laughed when I glared at her. I should have kept my mouth shut about that, felt like Hagrid when all he could say for a while was ‘I shouldn’t have said that, why’d I say that?’, but at least Fred came away with a good ten gallons over the whole deal.   
When the apple had been consumed and washed down with water, Angie grabbed me by the back of my red and gold robes and pulled me from the table. She handed me a hair tie, a red band, and had me put my shoulder length hair up into a pony tail. Then she thrust my broom into my hands and ordered me to follow her.   
Neville and Hermione ran to catch up as the rest of the team took their time getting away from the Gryffindor table; the two first years walked happily beside me and repeated already used words of encouragement. They also kept me from turning around and heading back towards the castle. Tried it but Neville’s hand on my shoulder stopped further attempts to escape.   
The two first years aka my honor guard left me at the door to the Gryffindor locker room and went on their way to find the usual seats. Angie sat me down on a bench in front a giant chalk board that had the pitch drawn on it; the x’s and o’s were moving about throwing a red dot and dodging two blue ones. I whimpered, I forgot about the bludgers.   
Katie sat down next to me and nudged me with her shoulder. She could tell that I was watching the blue colored bludgers fly around the drawing board. The brunette chaser just smiled at me as she put her arm across my shoulders.   
“They’re not as bad as you’d think,” she assured me “just remember to watch your surrounds. Wood will give you some drivel about how he wants this game to go but the most important is that you don’t take what he says seriously,” Katie was adamant about that “this game is a game of points. If we can get at least a 280 points then we can tie with Slytherin for the Quidditch cup, anything above that and we win. Still lose the house cup,” she shrugged “but that’s the way it goes.”  
We stayed that way as the rest of the team started to arrive. Fred sat down beside me and tried to cheer me up by making funny faces behind Wood’s back, stopping when Wood would turn around and doing it again when the captain would turn back to the front to rant on about getting as many points as possible. The funny faces didn’t stop my knee from bouncing anxiously or from trying to devise an escape route.   
When it was time to take the field I tried to make a break for it but Fred and George caught me under my arms and dragged me backwards on to the pitch. The stands went wild but the most laughter came from the Gryffindor section as the boys set me in place and Katie handed me my broom. Madam Hooch raised her eyebrow questioningly at me as the three Gryffindor chasers straightened out my robes and made sure the knot on the laces in front were secure.  
“Right,” Hooch called, she’d yet to amplify her voice. She eyed each of us with those fierce hawk eyes before kicking the ball box she’d been resting a foot on open, the snitch flew out and buzzed both teams before vanishing “take to your brooms and lift off,” she called waiting until all fourteen of us were in the air before tapping her throat with her wand “I want a clean game from all of you lot,” another kick and the bludgers were released, oh holy iron balls…I whimpered from where I was hovering and Hooch must have heard me because she looked up at me before shouting “begin!” and tossing the quaffle straight up to be caught by Katie.   
I rose above the action, trying to remember what Harry would do during matches. This meant not staying static, keeping an eye on the Ravenclaw seeker (bloke was a fifth year, didn’t know his name) and helping the chasers. Like now! I drove as the Ravenclaw chaser caught the quaffle mid-pass between Katie and Alicia.   
Streaking across their flight path was enough to kill their momentum and to trick that Ravenclaw seeker to follow me, so I kept flying as hard as I could towards the ground. Seen a New Zealand seeker do this to a Russian seeker once; Fraser called it a Wonski Faint or something.   
I pulled up about ten feet off the ground and used the momentum to rocket me upwards above everyone to where I had started. Looking back I so totally expected to see that Ravenclaw on the tail end of my broom. Instead, he was still lying on the ground, sprawled out.  
“I did I kill him?” I asked George, who was close by   
He laughed and shook his head “he just rolled, he’s fine!”   
I glanced at the scoreboard while Hooch called a time out to check on the blue and bronze seeker still on the ground. Gryffindor was up by forty points. Quick bit of math and I frowned, we’d have to be up by at least 130 if I caught the snitch to have any chance of getting the cup.   
The game started again when Hooch determined that the Ravenclaw seeker was fine and getting back on his broom. I waved goodbye to George and started doing that thing Harry did where he made random circles around the stadium. Ravenclaw got the quaffle again, I groaned not sure if it’d work a second time but I streaked across their path.   
This time I had to dodge a bludger, leaning away over I had one hand out stretched. Looked like I was playing an electric guitar. However, just as I was closing my hand to make a fist to try and right myself, I felt something cold and hard slap my palm as I closed my hand. The bludger shot past me and I rolled the broom over to get it under me again.   
Then I just sat there, hovering just under main play and gawked dumbly at the snitch in my hand. Hooch blew her whistle loudly and I heard Lee Jordan’s voice but honestly I hadn’t been paying attention to him at all. What…when did that….how did that…where did that….damn, we’d only gone up another twenty points. Won the game but lost the cup.   
Angie flew over and gaped at me as I said “I didn’t meant to catch this, it just hit my hand.”   
The older girl face palmed herself as she shook her head. Alicia and Katie helped Angie and me back to the ground where the twins were waiting. They both gave me comforting pats on the shoulders when I told them I’d caught it by accident. Wood was still hover up by his hoops in obvious disbelief like most of the stadium was in, except Slytherin; they were ecstatic.   
Back on the ground Madam Hooch just patted the top of my head before she took the snitch from me. I wasn’t quite sure what should happened now, did I just leave the stadium or did I go to the locker room? It was the twins who took pity on me and lead me back up towards the castle with a hand on each shoulder with Hermione and Neville jogging to catch up.  
“I didn’t mean to do that,” I said, still in shock and staring at my left hand. The culprit in this debacle “it just came out of nowhere. Came upright on my broom and there it was. Wham-bam, there ya go!”  
George just sighed “could have been worse,” he said honestly “could have gotten our backsides handed to us.”  
“Yea,” Fred added “besides that’s the best catch I’ve seen besides Harry trying to sallow the snitch his first game.”  
…..  
Gryffindor tower was very subdued that night after the game. At dinner, Katie pointed out that the Quidditch Cup, which Slytherin had won on points, would be awarded before the House cup was given out. I had asked because it had been a bit confusing about when what would be handed out and when we all hopped the train back to London.   
The next day had eased some of the Quidditch teams’ cup loss. Wood hadn’t been able to drown himself in the showers, not for a lack of trying though. Angie still trying to figure how I’d caught the snitch the way I did and Ronald refused to even look at me (that last one was alright with me).   
Neville kept reenacting the look that had been on my face just after I caught the snitch, he and Hermione kept giggle at his impression. Hermione was still standoffish with me and as this was probably the proper response to what I had told her about rethinking our friendship; it still felt really weird and was very disheartening.   
I felt like we could be close friends again, well…that’s what I hoped for anyways. Would have to see what happened over the summer. With Aunt Andy and Mrs. Granger being such good friends, I had the feeling that I’d be seeing a lot of Hermione over the summer. That seemed like a double edge sword. My musings were interrupted when Neville nudged me and smiled at me; made me wonder what Neville was up to for the summer.   
….  
Harry woke two days later, the day of the end of term feast and two days before we were to head back. We found him near the Great Hall when we’d headed down for lunch. Hermione ran to him and about strangled him in a hug. Ron and Neville shook his hand and I hung back because I wasn’t sure if I wanted to kill him or what.   
“You apologize Potter and I’ll hit you,” I said with my arms folded across my chest when Harry got to me and I saw the words forming on his lips “I will only forgive you if you promise that I will never be stuck in the position of playing reserve seeker again. I caught the damn thing by accident and lost the bloody cup!”   
Harry blinked at me before smiling and nodded “right, never again,” he promised before dragging me into a hug and whispering “thank you for coming to help us…me, I don’t know what would have happened. Never thought it that far through.”  
I chuckled and hugged my friend back “that’s what friends are for, Harry. No matter what they do to you, you’re there for them.”   
…..  
That night the Great Hall was bedecked in green banners that sported a twisting silver snake. I was happy to see that the Slytherins, Draco in particular, looked very pleased with themselves over this. If one was to put house rivalry aside then one could say that the Slytherins deserved this win. They had won points with good grades, one would assume acts of decency every now and again and they kept out of trouble unlike some. I caught Draco’s eye as I sat down and gave him a thumbs up; the gesture made him smile bigger.   
Once the food part of the feast was over, the fun began. I made those around me through various means (kicking under the table, nudging with an elbow) clap and cheer for the Slytherin team as Flint accepted the smaller, silver cup that sat on a table near Dumbledore’s podium from Snape who got it from the headmaster. It was good sportsmanship after all, wasn’t that the point of fair play?  
The wizened headmaster just grinned as he waited for the cheering to die down before he started his speech for the winners of the House cup “now for the house cup,” he held up a hand for peace when a cheer rose through the room, the Gryffindors were more subdued than the other tables “after a long year, in last place is Gryffindor with 312 points,” yea…I was getting a lot of glares from the whole length of the table “in third place with 352 points, Hufflepuff and in second with 426, Ravenclaw,” more cheers rattled the high windows “and in first place with the highest amount of points is Slytherin with 472 points,”   
The Slytherin table went berserk. Stomping on the floor and slapping on the table, there were whistles and shouts. The pandemonium trickled to a stop when Dumbledore up his hand again “however, because of new happenings I feel that I must award some last minute points,” there was buzz amongst the hall and I just shook my head “for a cool and collect sense of logic when faced with deathly odds, I award 50 points to Hermione Granger,” fuck…that bastard all to hell, why couldn’t what happened just go away “for the best game of chess, 50 points to Ronald Weasley,” Gryffindor table was cheering while I felt a coldness settle in the pit of my stomach but the old man wasn’t done “for an act of pure friendship and outstanding courage I award 50 points to Harry Potter.”  
There were gasps all down the table as I gritted my teeth. This put Gryffindor just ten points behind a now nervous and disbelieving Slytherin house; the old man wasn’t done. I glared at him when his eyes flicked to mine, a white and bushy eyebrow rose a fraction as he started speaking again “and for pure and selfless bravery I award Athena Black, 10 points,” that cold turned hot like my temper that was flaring as Dumbledore smiled and looked about “that would tie Gryffindor with Slytherin does it not?” he asked rhetorically and drew breath again, wasn’t this ever going to be over “and finally, it’s one thing to stand up to your foe but another to stand up to a friend. 10 points to Neville Longbottom for bravery.”  
The old man chuckled as Gryffindor held their breath “I think a change of color is in order,” he said and snapped his fingers causing the banners over head to turn from green to red.   
Gryffindor table went nuts and I didn’t care. I stood from the table, much like the others had, but I marched with fists clenched out of the Great Hall. Not sure if it was noticed or not but I left before something bad happened.   
….  
It was funny that I found myself back in that same abandoned classroom overlooking the lake. Purple flames hovering near me but no Tiberius this time. I hugged my knees to my chest and tried to get certain images out of my head. To combat them I was humming the theme song to ‘The Pink Panther’, really catchy tune that once in your head it NEVER WENT AWAY!  
“I see your control of the spell has increased, Miss Black,” I growled when I heard Dumbledore’s smooth and calm voice behind me “especially to use it to overcome Professor Snape’s enchanted flames.”  
“Must not have been impressive on Snape’s part if a twelve year old can outsmart his challenge,” I smirked at him “or maybe you wanted a bunch of first years to get passed it.”  
Dumbledore tilted his head at me “why would I want that?” he asked   
I shook my head at him, angry tears blurring my vision “vault 713, Gringotts bank. Under some of the most powerful wards and yet it’s broken into. How many people can pull that off? Hmm?” I asked angrily “why not give the stone back to Flamel? Or destroy it like Harry says that Flamel’s doing now? Instead you put it in a school with children!”   
The headmaster just folded his hands in front of him, his head still tilted “I felt it would be safe here.”  
I sneered “and tell me how could you have not known about Quirrell?” I demanded “I suspected him from that first Quidditch match, from Troll Night! You, Albus –too many damn names- Dumbledore! The greatest wizard since MERLIN!” I screamed “you had to have known something was wrong with him or you don’t deserve all those fucking titles you hold! If you’d done something then I wouldn’t have had to kill him!”   
Dumbledore nodded then “that’s it then?” he asked “you regret placing your life above his? You did what you had to.”  
“If you would have done your job and not endangered this school, I wouldn’t have had to!” I roared through clenched teeth “you’re not the one who has to see his face in your dreams, you’re not the one who has to watch him die, over and over again!” my whole body was trembling with rage now “he was a person no matter what co-habited his body! You trivialized that loss by giving points for it, you make it less by rewarding the breaking of the rules! You diminish it and Slytherin who deserved that win!”   
He nodded slowly and said “I see that you have learned a great deal in the time you spent with Blake Fraser,” his head tilted again as he eyed me thoughtfully “such respect and understanding for the dead is uncommon for one your age.”  
“You try dealing with witch doctors and voudon priests of both light and dark aspects and not come away with respect for it,” I snapped “they don’t tolerate disrespect.”  
Surprisingly Dumbledore let me walk out of the classroom right then. He let me walk past him and out the door with not a word or movement on his part. Now I had another reason to be upset. I had almost, successfully, repressed those events that happened in Haiti. Never going back there and New Orleans, Louisiana was a big NOPE as well.  
….  
McGonagall let me sleep on her couch after I arrived there late in the evening. It was the Grey Lady of all people, or ghosts, who got me there when I took a wrong turn and gotten lost. She’d been floating down the hallway and before she could vanish I told her I’d gotten lost.   
The ghost, as she is famous for, said nothing but motioned for me to follow her and outside of McGonagall’s office she vanished. When McGonagall opened her office door, she was in her tartan dressing gown again, she blinked at me before ushering me in. I didn’t ask permission as I went to the portrait of the standing stones and spoke the password.   
I planted myself in front of her fireplace, there was a low fire burning, and retook the posture I’d had in the abandoned classroom. After some time, McGonagall sat down beside me in a more comfortable position. Her time as a cat animagus had kept her limber.   
“Did Fraser ever tell you about an apprentice of Marie Laveau that we encountered in Haiti?” I asked, my stomach feeling very unsettled   
McGonagall frowned, she recognized the name of the Voodoo Queen “I’m not sure he ever mentioned it.”  
“Old woman keeping herself from aging through dark rituals,” I said “the apprentice not the Queen,” I clarified “the apprentice had amassed a cult to follow the dark spirits. One of them didn’t like me. I didn’t have enough respect for the spirits or the dead so she taught me a lesson. That was one of the reasons why I thought I could lead the others in the ritual with Binns. Why I thought he just needed the afterlife instead of the whole exorcism.”  
McGonagall’s frown deepened “what ‘lesson’ did she teach you?”  
I glowered at the fire “from what I remember of it, the woman ripped my soul from my body and introduced me to several souls she’d captured for about an hour. This was after she’d kidnapped me from Fraser while Kaylee had returned to the States for a wedding or something,” I didn’t look at McGonagall “she did return it, obviously, and then Fraser did something to lessen the trauma of it so Kaylee wouldn’t notice but she did. She didn’t leave me alone with Fraser for long periods of time after that. Come to think of it, this could by why Peeves doesn’t mess with me;” I mused “shitty thing is that I had almost forgotten it.”  
McGonagall didn’t move for a long while before she just threw her arms around me and pulled me to her body. Her tears soaked into my hair as she promised that she’d to get me a good mind-healer. I’m not sure if it was the weariness or the fact that I felt safe with her, but I fell asleep while she was holding me.

The End


End file.
